With the development of agriculture and production, the lives of the Empire's people improved day by day.
More and more people were wearing beautifully crafted yet affordable clothing, living in warm and sturdy brick-and-cement houses. Mirrors, white sugar, soap, glassware—luxuries they once didn't even dare dream of—had now become everyday items they could actually afford.
Everyone felt as if they were dreaming. Life had changed so dramatically, so quickly, that they could hardly adapt.
But they also knew very well who had given them this heaven-like life—something they once could only see in their dreams.
It was their Emperor, their God, who had pulled them out of hell and brought the paradise of their dreams into the mortal world.
As the people marveled at and enjoyed the transformation of their lives, their faith in Chen Mo grew ever more devout. If all of this wasn't a divine miracle, then what was?
Yet Chen Mo's reforms for the people did not stop there.
Aside from building and expanding civilian industries, he began large-scale road construction across the entire country to improve the flow of goods and ease transportation. At the same time, he developed hydraulic systems to guarantee irrigation and support river transport.
To improve the nation's overall cultural level and cultivate talent for all fields, Chen Mo built schools throughout the realm, popularized education, and gradually implemented nine-year compulsory schooling.
With the issue of food long solved, young children no longer had to help at home with herding or farm work—they could now attend school.
But the shortage of teachers was a serious problem. In this era, only nobles had the opportunity to learn to read. Ordinary peasants struggled just to fill their stomachs; they had no means or time to pursue education.
Fortunately, when Chen Mo conquered the European continent, he did not slaughter the nobles en masse. As long as they willingly submitted, he guaranteed their lives and property.
However, without income from their former territories, many noble families quickly ran into financial trouble. Although a number of capable nobles were reused by Chen Mo and placed in administrative roles to help govern lands, a great many still faced serious money problems.
At that time, Chen Mo offered them a way out: enter schools as teachers, instruct children, and earn wages.
Having already lost their noble titles, clinging to aristocratic airs would only invite misery. And so, many former lords, ladies, and noble misses stepped into classrooms, took up teaching rods, and began the path of educating the nation.
Agriculture, industry, economy, transportation, waterworks, education—everything underwent explosive development. Construction and production surged everywhere.
And close to Chen Mo—just a few kilometers from Blackstone Castle—an enormous city was rising bit by bit.
The people who had first followed him now settled within it, becoming the first residents of the imperial capital.
At the very center of this vast city stood a towering Gothic cathedral made of reinforced concrete and stone—the Imperial Temple, the spiritual heart of all subjects of the Empire.
On its wide, clean streets, people walked in fine clothes, their faces glowing with happiness and contentment.
By the roadside, a large rectangular public carriage slowly stopped at a wooden bus sign. Passengers alighted one after another through the rear door, heading toward their destinations, while those boarding queued neatly at the front door.
This, too, was clearly Chen Mo's idea.
Public carriages like these could be seen on every street, making travel remarkably convenient.
In a huge public square, people strolled leisurely. The elderly basked in the sun on long benches, while children ran, laughed, and played. Who could have imagined that just a few years ago, these same people were starving, rag-clad, living in constant fear, and at risk of becoming food for werewolves at any moment?
Since his ascension to the throne, Chen Mo had spent three years transforming a chaotic, dark Europe into a stable, prosperous, civilized society. The long and gloomy Middle Ages ended early, and Europe entered a new age of rapid development.
Having placed his territory and nation firmly on the right path and fulfilled his responsibility as lord and king, Chen Mo, satisfied with experiencing the full process of nation-building, was ready to leave.
But before departing, he still had much to arrange.
That day, in the study, Chen Mo summoned Andrew, Viktor, Amelia, and Marcus.
"I will soon be leaving this place."
Hearing this, the four stood straight with bowed heads. Andrew immediately asked:
"My lord, are you returning to the Divine Kingdom?"
Chen Mo nodded lightly.
"After I leave, the Empire will need a new emperor."
At this, his gaze landed on Andrew—the one who had served him the longest.
"Andrew, you will take the throne."
But Andrew felt no joy at all. He instantly fell to his knees, speaking with fervent conviction:
"No, my lord! The Empire will forever be your Empire. And I… I will forever be your most loyal knight!"
Andrew was a pure warrior, a loyal knight. The idea of replacing the position of the master he served was something he simply could not accept.
And he had no interest in becoming emperor. He was already Chen Mo's closest confidant, second only to him in status. He knew what authority tasted like, but he never yearned for it. Compared to drowning every day in endless political affairs, he would much rather charge into battle with his brothers—or shed his armor and live quietly with the woman he loved. Those things attracted him far more than the throne.
He already possessed eternal life and everything he had ever dreamed of. What more could he possibly desire?
Seeing Andrew's firm refusal, Chen Mo shook his head slightly and turned to Viktor.
Before he could even speak, Viktor dropped to one knee.
"My lord, your throne—no one can replace you!"
Viktor had once been a lord, but he lacked great ambition. His current position—noble as a Duke of the Empire—was already something beyond his past imagination. As for the imperial throne, in his eyes only Chen Mo deserved it.
Chen Mo then turned to Amelia.
"My lord!"
She also knelt. Though she didn't state her refusal outright, her expression had already answered for her. To her, perhaps her marquess estate was more appealing than the imperial throne itself.
Finally, Chen Mo looked at Marcus.
The moment Marcus met Chen Mo's unfathomable gaze, his heart clenched, and he instantly knelt, lowering his head deeply, not daring to utter a single word.
Once, he might have coveted that supreme position. But now, he didn't even dare to harbor such thoughts.
Even if the throne of the entire Empire were placed before him, he would not dare touch it—because it belonged to Chen Mo.
When he first pledged loyalty to Chen Mo, he had still harbored selfish thoughts, wanting to leverage Chen Mo's power to pursue greater authority. And to a certain degree, he had succeeded: from a monster hunted everywhere, he had risen to the top echelon of Europe's ruling class.
But that was the end of his ambition. His current position satisfied him completely. As for the supreme place belonging to Chen Mo—he dared not even dream of it.
The longer he served under Chen Mo, the more he realized how unfathomable Chen Mo truly was.
At first, he suspected Chen Mo might simply be a very powerful human. But as he learned more, he realized Chen Mo was filled with endless mysteries. The wonders surrounding him could not be explained by common sense.
He seemed omniscient and omnipotent. Not only was his strength terrifying, but he also possessed incomprehensibly advanced knowledge and technology far beyond this era—things that inspired more awe than his power.
Strength could be gained through mutation, as Marcus himself proved. But knowledge? That could not be taken or stolen. There was only one explanation:
Chen Mo truly was a god descending from the divine realm.
Once convinced of Chen Mo's divine identity, Marcus's fear and reverence only grew. The throne being offered by such a being was something he could only worship—not usurp.
In that brief moment, he understood perfectly: that position was one he must never touch. Rather than risk courting death for a throne that was not his, he would rather remain a Duke of the Empire and an elder of the blood clan.
Marcus had no idea that he had just walked back from the gates of hell. Had he not placed himself correctly in that instant, Chen Mo would have cut him down with a single stroke.
For Chen Mo had always kept a wary eye on this cold, ambitious progenitor of the vampires. He had never allowed Marcus to join the hunt for Alexander Corvinus, instead sending him to the eastern front to help conquer lands there.
The knights under Marcus were all loyal to Chen Mo—not to Marcus himself. Unlike Andrew, Viktor, and Amelia, each of whom had their own core followers, Marcus's knights only followed him during war. Once battles ended, he returned to being a solitary figure with no ability to mobilize any knight at will.
Among the four vampire elders, Marcus had the least actual power. Though loyal, his loyalty was rooted more in fear than in faith. Compared to Andrew and the others—whose devotion bordered on worship—Marcus fell far short.
He didn't even know that his father, Alexander Corvinus, was inside the castle.