I! Cleaner!-Chapter 1027 - 956: Ointment (Part 1)

Facing Leon's retort, the lips of the Ophiuchus board director instinctively opened and closed twice but quickly pursed back in helplessness.

Not to mention how a "Cleansing Bureau traitor" could report anything, the sheer difference in status between the two sides doomed the fact that the Cleansing Bureau would not believe a word of it.

On one hand, there was the traitor who "coveted" the power of the Crimson Overlord, indirectly causing the destruction of the East Carleighwen Kingdom; on the other hand, there was the young director who had repeatedly defeated the Slaughter King Association and led the Cleansing Bureau to victory in the Realm of the Dead. The Cleansing Bureau would have to be insane to believe him.

'Although I think you wouldn't be stupid enough to run off and report, just in case, I still want to remind you of a couple of things.'

Glancing at the Ophiuchus board director, whose face was turning purple, the red-haired director sitting cross-legged in another conifer cup, propped his chin with his hand, and spoke leisurely:

'Those in the Slaughter King Association may not have told you, but the Cleansing Bureau is not what it used to be. Among the five current board directors in the present world, Sagittarius and Pisces are waiting for resurrection in the Realm of the Dead, Capricorn is still on Heavenly Mountain and hasn't returned, and Cancer is busy grooming an heir to hand over the Pit of the Stomach God, leaving no time to handle bureau affairs.

The only one left to manage the affairs, Lord Taurus, is nursing injuries due to consecutive hits on the Watcher's Palace and the Realm of the Dead, and she's been saved by Leon several times. So now the Cleansing Bureau is essentially being run by Leon; reporting to them is useless, and it might even be Leon himself processing the reports.'

'...'

Do you mean... two of those five old guys are dead, one fled, and of the remaining two, one can't manage, and the other is practically in cahoots with the Food God, so...

He's already weeded out all opposition and is preparing to completely control the Cleansing Bureau?!!!

The explosive news revealed by the red-haired director left the Ophiuchus board director's head spinning, and he hurriedly reached out to steady himself on the conifer cup's inner wall, even causing "Prince Vernon" to sway along.

Seeing him just tremble without speaking, Leon outside couldn't help but narrow his eyes briefly and then discreetly adjusted the [Crimson Heart], silently locking onto the Prince Vernon in front of him.

However, just before Leon could make a move, a small brass bell emerged from the heart of the Ophiuchus board director, sounding with a thud, and with this "warning bell" reminder, the Ophiuchus board director quickly snapped back to reality, tensing up all over and shouted sharply:

"What do you want to do!"

Ah, there's actually a warning-type anomaly item?

Regretfully glancing at that little bell, Leon felt the slight turbulence finally revealed in another Heart Lake inside "Prince Vernon's" body, pondered slightly, and then silently retracted the Crimson Heart.

According to the Taurus director, the Ophiuchus board director was already quite formidable in strength and had harnessed the Transformation Secret Technique of the Ophiuchus Palace to completely merge with the Crimson Overlord's [Crimson Blood], making him a very challenging opponent.

Even holding the Crimson Heart, which restrains him, could at most defeat him but likely wouldn't capture or completely kill him. As soon as the Crimson Heart appeared and made him sense danger, he would certainly flee immediately and never show up again.

So... it seems I still have to target his Heart Lake!

Feeling the gigantic Heart Lake on the brink of losing control and the power constantly swelling within due to feedback from authority, Leon couldn't help but tug the corner of his mouth upward, showing the Ophiuchus board director an exceptionally kindly smile.

"I'm not doing anything... continuing to confront each other like this is pointless, so why not... have a chat?"

"..."

What kind of crap chat would that be! What can I possibly talk about with a lunatic like you?

Uneased by Leon's smile, the Ophiuchus board director, facing this super maniac ready to overthrow everything, even wanting to leave nothing of the Cleansing Bureau behind, was momentarily lost in thought, and even vaguely understood how other directors felt when looking at him back in the day.

How could he dare?

Do young people nowadays act this radically?

For heaven's sake, has his brain gone to rot? How can he concoct crazier plans than I do?

Also... did I maybe overdo it back in my time? Should I really have been more conservative?

"If you have no objections, I'll start talking."

While the Ophiuchus board director crossed time and space and shared a strong sense of empathy with those old members who once hindered him, Leon, having organized his thoughts, took the initiative to ask:

"What's the basis for your conclusion that if the present world falls into my hands, it will inevitably lead to destruction?"

"Of course, there is!"

Seeing Leon actually broach this topic upfront, even knowing that continuing might be disadvantageous, the Ophiuchus board director couldn't resist angrily rebuking:

"Your entire approach is a complete mess! The Thirteen Kingdoms have issues, can't you just replace them with normal people without any special bloodlines? If you dismantle all the kingdoms directly, how will ordinary people survive in the present world?"

Hearing this, Leon raised an eyebrow.

"So, what you're saying is, without the royal families riding on their heads, ordinary people wouldn't even survive?"

"That's not what I mean!"

The Ophiuchus board director glared:

"You simply don't understand anything! Do you know how hard it is to establish an organization that can manage over a billion people and ensure everyone's basic stability? If you dismantle all Thirteen Kingdoms..."

"If I truly dismantle all Thirteen Kingdoms, it would be because they've lost their reason for existence."

Interrupting the Ophiuchus board director, Leon calmly explained:

"I've discussed it with Veronica that once the sexton absorbs the technology and artisans of the Crolock Kingdom and builds a trade channel with the Northern Kingdom, after the situation stabilizes, the next step is to promote education as widely as possible and start constructing a foundational communication infrastructure covering the entire kingdom."

"Who's this Veronica?"

"Here."

Raising his hand, showing the ring on his ring finger to the Ophiuchus board director for understanding, Leon continued:

"Governing a country with a population of over a billion is indeed extremely challenging, but the act of governance itself is not complicated. The core requirements are just two: having enough people to handle various affairs and swift, accurate information exchange.

With the spread of education, people capable of handling various affairs will naturally increase, and after targeted examination and training, they can fully replace the existing civil service system of the major kingdoms, facilitating a smooth transition as much as possible.

And once the basic communication infrastructure is fully in place, the speed of information flow will be many times faster than it is now, eliminating the need to delegate power and thus doing away with all the messy things like minor nobles and fiefdoms that arise due to slow information exchange, only leaving the king and..."

"Those are just your ideas!"

Hearing this, the Ophiuchus board director couldn't hold back his retort:

"How do you ensure these people you choose wouldn't become new aristocrats and 'royalty'? Just like you said before, once they seize power..."

"If things can't be managed while they're alive, we could settle the total score together after they're dead."

"?"

After rummaging in the mirror world, Leon found a brochure of the Underworld bureau, flipped to the introduction page of the Eighteen Levels of Hell, and handed it over with a grin.

"Though it's not entirely finished yet, the setup is mostly complete, and by the end of the year, all eighteen levels will surely be open. You are welcome to visit then."