"Are these all true?"
"Fake, not a single piece of information is real."
"But this group of Bloodline who have always stayed inside the ancient castle doesn't know that; even if they suspect, they wouldn't dare."
"Because these were words personally spoken by the Ancestor they revered the most."
"In fact, because Lide had become a noble of Green City and a member of the Mage Association, he would often bring back some news about Green City."
"So when Lide revealed the news that Green City had discovered the Bloodline, not a single one doubted it."
"When they heard that the Extraordinary Mage Rock Hart had also noticed the Bloodline, the Bloodlines below were immediately scared."
"An Extraordinary Mage, what kind of existence is that? In the entire Green City ruled area, with a population in the millions in the Far Mountain Range, there was only this one Extraordinary Mage."
"Moreover, Rock Hart had personally participated in the siege of the Bloodline a hundred years ago; his strength made the Bloodline taste the flavor of fear firsthand."
Lide's eyes didn't show much fluctuation, looking at the somewhat frightened Bloodline below, he felt slightly relaxed.
"Finally, I scared this group of reclusive nerds who are cut off from the world."
"He wanted to make drastic reforms to the Bloodline now, and the best way to do it was to unite all the clan members."
"The Bloodline was his root, Lide couldn't give it up."
"If he forcefully issued orders, even if the Bloodline obeyed due to his status, the efficiency wouldn't be guaranteed."
"Even if a small number of people shirked and slacked off, it could significantly undermine his plans."
"By simply creating an external crisis, he could immediately mobilize everyone's enthusiasm."
"This was just like how some countries conducted wars to cope with domestic economic crises during World War II."
"Turning internal conflicts into external conflicts."
"In the emergency of life and death, even the most unreasonable reforms had grounds."
"And most critically, the Bloodline had suffered great losses at the hands of an Extraordinary Mage before, and the fear of an Extraordinary Mage was deeply ingrained in their blood."
After the Bloodline below had almost finished their discussions, Lide slowly said.
"Before, I didn't manage you because I wanted to test your wisdom, to see if you could find the correct path without my management."
"But I am very disappointed in you."
After speaking, the seven second-generation Bloodlines in front all lowered their heads, eyes showing some remorse.
"It is an unforgivable fault that you failed to notice such a serious crisis as Green City preparing to encircle us."
"In order to cope with the huge crisis and to strengthen the Bloodline, we must undergo reform."
"Reform?"
The Bloodline below looked at each other.
Lucy asked curiously, "Father, how do we conduct reform?"
Lide scanned the crowd and raised his voice.
"We Bloodlines must embark on a path of sustainable development."
"After so much buildup, Lide finally expressed his inner thoughts."
"Ancestor Crown, what is sustainable development?"
"What does this mean?"
"Father..."
Upon hearing this strange term, the Bloodline group was somewhat bewildered, "Night Goddess above," they heard this term for the first time.
"How did we handle the humans we captured before?"
Audis's steady voice sounded.
"Clan Leader, the humans we raided were confined in caves to be raised, and the clan members needed to feed once a month, and the dead humans were thrown off the cliff."
Audis's meaning was obvious, these people were just food for the Bloodline, and every meal meant one would be killed.
Lide shook his head, too crude, no wonder the Bloodline was so hated by the human world.
"He simultaneously became alert; even if there was no crisis as he just mentioned, the Bloodline couldn't thrive in the long run."
"Especially once the players descended, those troublemaking idiots would certainly treat the Bloodline as experience points and clean them up."
"Wrong, we've been wrong all along."
"Wrong?"
"How could it be wrong?"
"Wrong? Why? Humans are just our food."
Lucy's delicate face was full of confusion.
"Father must have information we haven't come across," she thought, relieved that with Father here, the Bloodline escaped another crisis.
Lide stared directly into the eyes of the other party.
Concentrating his Magic Power, a strong aura rose as he said in a deep voice,
"Humans are indeed our food, but you need to know that if we raise enough humans, do not kill them, and even provide protection, they can continuously supply us with food."
"Just like humans raise hens for laying eggs, we can do the same."
"Moreover, the intelligence of humans is something many races lack."
"They can be completely ruled by us to create more wealth instead of merely being farmed in caves as food."
This statement appeared somewhat odd and unconventional against the background of this world.
Humans had always been viewed as food by the Bloodline, and their status in Bloodline's eyes was akin to how humans see chickens, ducks, and geese.
"Now asking them to protect these foods and even to rule over them."
"This obviously had a significant impact on Lucy and the other Bloodlines."
Lide slightly relaxed seeing that the Bloodline did not outright refute.
"This world wasn't one that claimed all men are created equal like Earth."
"Here, nobles could easily control the life and death of commoners; people had classes and were highly unequal."
"Not to mention a gifted, not weak Upper Race like the Bloodline; making them accept humans wasn't a matter of just a few words."
Humans were undoubtedly the mainstream in this world.
"No matter how strong the Bloodline, they couldn't possibly defeat an entire country; even the forces of a single city could annihilate most Bloodline clans in this world."
"In Lide's vision, for the Bloodline to develop and expand, they must establish a city with a large human population."
"The Bloodline would play the role of Guardians in this city."
"Without humans, the Bloodline couldn't survive; humans could donate blood to the Bloodline as food routinely without harming their health."
"In this way, humans are free from external threats, the Bloodline has a stable food source, and humans as a labor force can continuously create wealth for them."
"This idea seemed idealistic, but it had a high possibility of realization."
"Firstly, Lide was the Blood Clan Ancestor, and the loyalty of the Bloodline to him was absolute; there was no fear of hindrance, at most, some Bloodline might slack off or shirk."
"This provided a foundation on the Bloodline side."
"Secondly, in this world's context, it was a magical world where gods in the Divine Country watched over their believers, and Evil Gods lurked in the Abyss."
"Conflicts among races and nations were rampant in this world."
"Ordinary civilians were like chicks here, at the mercy of others."
"War was constant."
"And a place that could provide protection for civilians, ensuring their life and property safety in exchange for a bit of blood that didn't harm them."
"Would absolutely be accepted by war-torn refugees plagued by Demon Beasts on the border."
"Finally, there was..."