Mixed Blessing System



While Victoria was dealing with the new members of the Ritter Motor Company, things were a bit hectic at the Ritter family headquarters.

As the number of vehicles circulating not only in Peter City but also in various places in the province, the number of citizens joining the communication formations of these vehicles increased.

An ordinary citizen with few resources would normally only be able to use communication formations in areas the size of Peters City. Beyond that, they would be hampered by the limitations of the communication formations.

But with Lothur's cars, even an ordinary citizen could communicate with people up to a few dozen kilometers away from the city.

As a result, the number of people using the communication formations of their vehicles had greatly increased, significantly raising the difficulty of the Koch family's work.

There were already more than two thousand workstations in the headquarters, which were located at the lowest level of the area, waiting for new employees who would soon arrive.

Meanwhile, more than a thousand people were there, spying on the more than 5,000 vehicles in the province.

Not everyone used their communications arrays simultaneously. Hence, the number of people working there was more than enough to spy on that number of vehicles.

But the Koch patriarch who ran the operation thought he would soon need more people and workstations, so he was expanding the area.

As the new cars spread across the province, more people would come under his watch.

Not only that, but the more cars that were delivered, the more important people would receive their vehicles and naturally need to be watched.

Most of the people who bought cars were ordinary Mortal Warrior cultivators who were irrelevant to this group. For the time being, this group focused on people in the 2nd and 3rd stages.

These people had decision-making power or might know relevant things and make the mistake of saying the wrong thing through the communication formations of their cars. Therefore, this post was watching such people with more focus.

The number of such people with vehicles had been steadily increasing, making this underground place increasingly noisy, with many people silently listening to the conversations of others.

[Car 923; ****: Hey, pick up our son from the academy!]

[Car 345; ****: Don't push me, woman. I'm working!]

[Car 1,235; ****: Hey, handsome? Are you ready to see me tonight?]

[Car 2,564; ***: Hehe, isn't your husband home?]

[Car 4,322; ***: Hey, we have to put pressure on the Ritter family. These women can't be in charge of the company for long...]

Various conversations sounded around this location as the many listeners there took note of relevant facts and cataloged the conversations they were watching.

Meanwhile, in his office, the Koch patriarch analyzed some of the reports from his men.

Every 12 hours, he would receive updates on the conversations that had taken place in the previous hours, something he felt was necessary to build the power of this family.

Not only did they have access to conversations with negative intentions against their leader's family, but they also had access to much more, like compromising things that could be used the way they liked.

With access to certain information about thousands of people in that province, this place gradually built up dossiers on many people whom emissaries of the family could eventually visit.

If a nobleman made things difficult for them, they could simply present what they knew and try to change things in their favor without violence!

Threats and blackmail were what kept the powerful people of the empire in line!

And so, while no one knew what the Ritter family was up to, the file of compromising information on people in this city was slowly growing.

...

Meanwhile, in the empire's capital...

Much had happened in the weeks since Lothur had changed the situation for some Imperial Family members and their allies.

With two of Lars' key allies acting for the good of Lothur, the Third Prince's group had suffered considerable defeats in recent weeks.

A powerful group he had sent to Peter's City to take over the Ritter Motor Company had been wiped out. At the same time, several more of his subsequent plans had failed miserably.

Things had been so drastic for Lars that he had already suspected enemy spies in his group and had barely left the Imperial Palace recently.

This had made it difficult for Klaus to take action against him, who had tried to eliminate this younger brother for good.

But even though he had failed to eliminate one of Lothur's greatest enemies in Leopoldine, Klaus had completely outmaneuvered his brother in the race for the position of heir to the Empire!

He had finally gained enough support from the family elders to be named Crown Prince.

Not only that but after the emperor's return from his last journey, he was recognized by his own father. Now, it was only a matter of time before he rose to local leadership!

Amidst all this, a disturbing rumor was spreading through the Leopoldine family!

...

At the Leopoldine Imperial Palace, the strongest elders of the family stood around the emperor's residence, all with serious expressions.

There was a line of experts leading to a room from which the sounds of women's cries could be heard among the men's conversations.

Inside this room, the old emperor was lying on a large bed, half of his body covered with silver sheets, while his appearance was pale.

In front of the bed, some women dressed in black were crying, letting their tears flow while avoiding looking at this man.

Next to the bed where the old emperor lay, two silver-haired youths knelt down beside him, both with serious expressions on their faces.

"Father!"

"My children, my time is coming." The old emperor said, feeling quite weak. "I won't last much longer, so listen to what I have to say."

The old emperor was already very old, almost at the limit of his life expectancy. If one could see how much time he had left, they would see that it was not even weeks!

He had not advanced a single step in his last attempt, and now his life could not be extended any further!

Cultivators could live normally until their last days. Still, when their life expectancy became less than a few days, most would suddenly lose much of their strength and quickly fade away.

This was what happened to the emperor, who two days ago had seemed as healthy as he had ever been in recent years but had suddenly fallen ill and could not even get out of bed.

Everyone there knew what was about to happen, and the mourning for his departure could already be seen in the terrible expressions of the people there.

"My children, do not stand against one another. I feel that the empire's future will be complicated after my departure. This is not the time for you to confront each other." He said with difficulty before looking at his second son.

"Klaus, rule wisely. My state is in your hands now."

Lars clenched his fists and pressed his lips together but said nothing despite his displeasure.

"As for you, Lars, help your brother. Forget your quarrel. Now is the time to unite for the good of the family."