I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1187 The Saintess's Warning
"This is bizarre, this is really bizarre!"

In the Temple of Jupiter, the high priest, pale-faced, shook his head repeatedly when Albinus came to consult him.

“Your Majesty, the crystals and rituals you described… I have searched through all the ancient esoteric texts and found no similar records. This is definitely not a gift from Jupiter or any known deity!”

"However, based on the fact that it needs to be powered by the blood of warriors, I can conclude that this thing must be a trap of some evil god."

“No righteous god would perform such an evil ritual! Jupiter would never condone such an act!”

The high priest suddenly grabbed Albanus's arm, his nails digging almost into his flesh: "Your Majesty, please hear me! Cooperating with this unknown force is tantamount to drinking poison to quench thirst! Even... even if we temporarily defeat the Han people, who can guarantee that we won't unleash a disaster even more terrible than Su Yao's? Rome's glory cannot be built on such an evil foundation!"

Albanus stood in the pillar of light cast from the temple dome, his expression shifting between light and shadow. He was well aware of the strangeness of the situation, but recalling the power displayed by the man in black robes and the unstoppable advance of the Han army, he had few options.

"Then I ask you, High Priest, did Jupiter offer any good advice in the face of that evil Eastern demon? When the Han army's cannons shattered the temple's colonnade, should we pray, or should we raise our swords and shields?"

The high priest was speechless.

Albanus gave a wry smile: "Try to look on the bright side. At least this so-called 'evil god' has given us real firearms. If everything goes smoothly, maybe I won't need to activate the power of that 'anchor' to defeat the Han army on the front lines."

Byzantium, mid-October of the sixth year of the Kaiyuan era.

"Oh? The Romans mastered our technology so quickly?"

Su Yao had just arrived in this new capital riding his Griffin when he received this very unexpected piece of information.

He never expected that after only half a year of returning home, when he came back, the Romans had already learned to use gunpowder and were able to cause them enough trouble on the battlefield, even fighting each other to a standstill on some battlefields.

“Interesting.” Su Yao tapped the bronze table lightly with his fingertips, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the movements of the new Roman army marked on the map. “Albinus…it seems this new emperor is better at learning than Severus.”

Zhou Yu pushed several battle reports in front of him: "Your Majesty, the Romans have not only copied our Tiger Crouching Cannon, but also improved their heavy ballistae, using iron components and improved torsion springs. What's more troublesome is that they seem to have mastered the secret of granulated gunpowder—although its power is still not as great as ours, it can already pose a substantial threat to our formation."

Guo Jia added: "According to reports from spies, Albinus equipped all five newly formed legions with this 'new weapon' and adopted flexible defensive tactics, using the mountainous terrain of the Balkan Peninsula to set up layers of defenses and slow down our advance. General Guan Yu's offensive in North Africa was also thwarted by the Carthaginian defenders' use of similar firearms."

Su Yao stood up and walked to the huge Mediterranean sand table. The small blue flags representing the new Roman army were densely planted along the Balkan Peninsula and the coast of North Africa, forming a standoff with the red flags representing the Han army.

"In just six months, they've learned and organized a new army to fight against us? It seems I underestimated this opponent."

Su Yao pinched his chin, considered for a moment, and said, "But it doesn't matter, I will take action."

"Order the fleet to assemble, target Rome! This time I'll launch another pincer attack, strike at their heart, and raid their home base!"

At Su Yao's command, the Western naval fleet in the Eastern Mediterranean was immediately mobilized.

After six months of renovation and intensive work, the Han Dynasty has built fifteen "Dingyuan-class" giant ships and hundreds of light vessels and various auxiliary warships at its five shipbuilding bases in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Countless warships converged on Byzantium from various ports. This time, Su Yao did not choose to fly directly to Rome. Since the Romans had mastered gunpowder technology, he decided to personally oversee the navy to ensure absolute control of the sea.

However, he did not expect that on the eve of the army's oath-taking ceremony, an unexpected guest arrived with the ships from Antioch Port, causing Su Yao's plans to change slightly.

"Isn't this our Holy Maiden?" "Why did you come all this way?"

"Could something have happened to Samira?"

In the temporary palace in Byzantium, Su Yao was greatly surprised when he saw the person who had arrived. It was none other than Dina, the saintess from the Kushan Empire.

This saintess, who should have been assisting Queen Samira in governing the Kushan Empire, was now weary from her journey, her plain white robe stained with the dust of her travels, but her deep eyes shone brighter than the stars.

She first performed a solemn Kushan greeting to Su Yao, and then said:

"Great Holy Lord, Supreme Emperor, I salute you."

"Queen Samira and His Highness the Prince are both well, and there is no unrest within the Kushan Empire. I have come here today because three months ago I suddenly fell into a long and strange dream."

"A dream? Could it be..."

“Yes, I’m certain, this is a divine oracle.” Saint Dina clasped her hands to her chest and closed her eyes. “I am filled with both trepidation and excitement to receive a divine oracle once again, but the vision it presents this time fills me with dread.”

"What do you see?"

Saintess Dina fell silent. She glanced at the Han and Hu generals standing in the hall, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping herself.

Upon seeing this, Su Yao immediately understood and waved for everyone to leave, leaving only Zhou Yu, Guo Jia, and a few others before asking again.

However, Dina remained silent for a moment before saying that this matter was of great importance and she hoped to report it privately.

However, Su Yao said, "It's alright, they are all my trusted confidants, and they share my joys and sorrows."

Seeing Su Yao's resolute attitude, and glancing at Zhou Yu's composure and Guo Jia's wisdom, Dina knew that these men were indeed Su Yao's confidants. Without further hesitation, she slowly opened her eyes and said, trembling:
"This oracle was clearer than the vague metaphors of the past. I saw a strait burning fiercely, a desert littered with corpses, and a city shrouded in blood and darkness."

"Straits, deserts, and cities?"

Zhou Yu and Guo Jia exchanged a glance, both seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

They weren't initially very interested in this saintess; after all, Confucius said, "Don't talk about strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits."

Apart from their incomprehensible emperor, he had indeed not seen anything beyond his understanding from anyone else.

But the information this saintess is now providing surprisingly aligns with their upcoming actions.

Judging from the scene depicted by the saint, the strait is likely the Strait of Messina, where they planned to march, and the desert is the Carthaginian battlefield where Guan Yu's army was locked in a stalemate. As for the city...
"May I ask, Your Highness, what are the characteristics of that city?" Guo Jia asked.

Dina took a deep breath and traced lines in the air with her fingertips: "The city has seven hills, a river flows through it, and beside the huge amphitheater stands a statue of a wolf nursing two infants... In my dream, I heard people praising its eternity."

"It really is Rome!" Zhou Yu and Guo Jia exclaimed in unison.

(End of this chapter)