Shushan: Extinction

Chapter 274 Rise of a Dynasty
Venerable Qingxu said:

"Inside the Ice Whale Cave in Shuiyanze."

Gong Tianwu had only meant it as a casual bluff, but he hadn't expected to actually catch a fish that had slipped through the net, so he said:

"Tell your people to move aside and mind their own business, and nothing will happen."

After hearing this, Venerable Qingxu gritted his teeth and said:

"Do you keep your word?"

Gong Tianwu sneered:

"In this situation, why would I need to lie to you? Who is Shui Yanze?"

Venerable Qingxu said:

"The one in the black robe on the west side, he's also one of the three elders."

After he finished speaking, he suddenly screamed "Ah!" and plummeted erratically from the sky, spitting out a mouthful of blood. He then transformed into specks of rainbow light and fled, shouting as he did so:
"The intruder is incredibly powerful! Disciples, quickly retreat with me into the Abyss of the Heart!!"

With the ringleader gone, his followers and accomplices naturally lost all fighting spirit and scattered like birds and beasts.

Moreover, people have a herd mentality. Once they realize that many people are starting to run away, the remaining people, unless they are particularly stubborn, will most likely follow suit.

Therefore, within just a few seconds, less than one in ten dared to stand there and confront Gong Tianwu and the others.

Gong Tianwu then rushed towards Shui Yanzhe, who was wearing a black robe.

This person's face was ashen, and he unleashed a chilling divine light with a backhand!
This supernatural power may seem ordinary, but it actually draws upon the ancient ice energy of the far north that has existed for ten thousand years. Those who are hit by it will instantly have their blood frozen and die.

Not only that, this person also released a thousand-year-old enslaved ice demon, which rushed straight at Gong Tianwu.

Gong Tianwu laughed loudly:
"Well done!"

The muscles in his right arm suddenly tensed, and blue-purple magnetic patterns appeared on the surface of his skin, meandering and moving like living things.

As the five fingers spread open, the palm suddenly collapsed, forming a deep, dark vortex of magnetic light, with fine, silvery-white arcs of electricity leaping along its edges!
This is one of the three great supernatural powers that Gong Tianwu has cultivated:

Magnetic God-Slaying Hand!!

His figure flashed several times, effortlessly dodging the Cold Soul Divine Light, and then aimed a wisp of his hand at the Thousand-Year Ice Demon in front of him.

The latter let out a shrill scream, its hands and feet trembling violently, but its bones made a chilling "crackling" sound. After only a few seconds, the monster's body twisted and convulsed.

As can be seen, a large amount of debris fell from the sky, and the monster's body rapidly shrank and withered.

Finally, two smooth, round metal marbles, only the size of a fingertip, formed from its eye sockets.

This was clearly the metal substance within the Thousand-Year Ice Demon's body being forcibly extracted, forming a metallic iron bead in Gong Tianwu's palm.

In an instant, Gong Tianwu waved his hand, and the two metal beads shot out, piercing the foreheads of two Trap Island disciples who were still putting up a last-ditch resistance. The heads of these two unlucky guys exploded.

Upon seeing his disciple die a gruesome death, Shui Yanzhe was enraged. He took out a magic whisk and waved it in the wind. The whisk's strands transformed into thousands of tentacles, which came to capture Gong Tianwu.

Who knew that at this moment, Gong Tianwu let out a long roar, and everyone around him, whether friend or foe, lost control of their metal weapons and magical artifacts.

Hundreds of weapons instantly materialized behind Gong Tianwu, then simultaneously shot out and slashed at Shui Yanzhe.

Upon witnessing this scene, Shui Yanzhe's pupils instantly shrank. He already knew that the mysterious enemy in front of him was cultivating the Yuan Magnetic Golden Chapter.

However, Shui Yanzhe had never seen Elder Tianhai, who descended to the mortal realm thirty years ago, wield such power from the Yuan Magnetic Golden Chapter. That elder was the most beloved disciple of the Trapped Void Ancestor!
In that moment of distraction, Shui Yanzhe was stabbed through the abdomen by a dagger. He screamed in agony and immediately lost his will to fight, turning and fleeing.

At the same time, Gong Tianwu's Wulou Guards had already rushed forward and engaged in a fierce battle with the remaining disciples of Xiankong Island.

Gu Yu, who was leading the charge, was now at the forefront. His arms, leg armor, and breastplate were all covered with dark gold inscriptions, the patterns of which were ancient and heavy, faintly glowing with blood.

Because his strength was already that of a true Martial Saint, he wore a standard inscribed battle armor internally known as the "Black Leopard."

The inscriptions on this armor set have two main characteristics:
The first benefit is protection, which can greatly reduce the damage caused by the cultivator's first three attacks.

The second is Feather Flight, which allows the wearer to move as lightly as a swallow, giving them a huge advantage in speed and dodging.

Opposite Gu Yu, two disciples from Trap Island stood with solemn expressions, their robes fluttering, and their bodies enveloped in pale blue magnetic divine light.

"How dare a mere mortal offend my immortal sect!"

The leading disciple sneered, his Xuanbing daggers already poised to strike from his sleeve.

However, Gu Yu roared and punched the ice surface with his right fist. The martial saint's violent power punched a large crater in the ice surface, stirring up a cloud of ice dust.

"What?!" The disciples of Trapped Sky Island's pupils shrank sharply, their vision blurred, and they immediately lost sight of their target!
"it's here!"

Another disciple roared, his fingertips already flashing with blue and white light, about to unleash the Yuan Magnetic Chains in an attempt to restrain Lei Lie's movements.

Lei Lie took a deep breath, then suddenly lunged forward, disappearing from the ground in an instant!
The next instant, he appeared in front of his opponent and unleashed a sweeping whip kick!
"Crack!"

The disciple's sternum collapsed, his protective aura shattered like glass, and he was sent flying dozens of feet away, crashing into the ice wall, with a large amount of blood spilling from the corners of his mouth.

When Lei Lie turned around, he found that several palm-sized, bat-like four-winged monsters were swooping down from the side and attacking another disciple of Trapped Sky Island.

This is the rune drone developed by Gong Tianwu, called Earfly. Its chip is a specially cultivated Gu worm, which is combined with the Blood God Sect's technology for creating blood infants. Therefore, it is actually a rather unique industrial product, similar to a flesh puppet.

Compared to drones on Earth, they can only be said to be products of the same concept, but in terms of appearance and design, they are completely different.

These ear-like dragonflies fly with incredible speed, possessing the ability to fly swiftly in the dark like bats, and also moving swiftly and darting through the air like dragonflies. They also have a wide variety of attack methods:
He released invisible and silent infrasound waves at the disciple, causing him to feel dizzy and nauseous.

On one hand, it can also launch its own incendiary missiles unexpectedly.

After firing all eight of his Demon Incineration Missiles, he had one last move: to rush towards the enemy and self-destruct, using his own flesh and blood to attack them.

The disciples of Trap Island already had little practical combat experience. They were already flustered when faced with an attack from a single ear-dragon, let alone when attacked from three or four at once.
He was quickly hit by three Demonic Flames in quick succession. The damage caused by the explosion of these things was not high, but they could ignite a trace of inner demon fire to burn his heart and soul!
This missile was developed with the personal participation of the monk Guangxiao. He was well-versed in Buddhism and knew that Buddhism and demons were two sides of the same coin, so he painstakingly designed this weapon.

You don't really feel anything when you get hit by one or two Demon Incineration missiles.

However, once this thing is piled up to a high number of layers, it becomes extremely troublesome, like a persistent leech that is impossible to get rid of. For those whose Dao heart is unstable, the number of layers will increase on its own over time.

Even more terrifying is that when the fire of inner demons accumulates to an extremely high level, it may prematurely trigger the great calamity of inner demons that terrifies all cultivators!
Moreover, the Wulou Guards brought by Gong Tianwu had received military-style training. They were divided into groups of five, with martial artists fighting in front, crossbowmen attacking from mid-range, and quasi-cultivators with high spiritual awareness hiding in the distance to control the rune drones, the Earfly.

Furthermore, they had conducted extensive rehearsals beforehand. Under such circumstances, the cultivators of Trap Island could be aptly described as suffering a crushing defeat.

Soon, the entire villa on Trapped Sky Island fell to the enemy. Gong Tianwu did not rush to pursue them, but instead went to the side hall next door and chatted with Venerable Qingxu, who was hiding inside, through a door.

To be honest, he had no intention of wiping out the entire family, but he also needed to ensure that the purpose of this trip could be achieved.

After chatting for about ten minutes, the two suddenly heard a huge roar from the west, followed by a series of intense flashes of light in the sky.

Looking in that direction, it's clearly the Ice Whale Cave!
Gong Tianwu was taken aback and hastily ended the conversation, rushing over there.

When he arrived at the Ice Whale Cave in Shuiyanze, he found that although there were traces of battle everywhere, and it could even be described as a scene of carnage and devastation, everything had already settled down.

As you can see, an exceptionally large corpse is kneeling on the ground, its eyes wide open, looking as if it died with its eyes open in disbelief.

The corpse was draped in a robe and wore a magnificent golden helmet.

Gong Tianwu was no stranger to this person; it was none other than Yan Renying!
That prodigy, Yan Renying, one of the Three Heroes and Two Clouds!
Yan Renying, who is on par with Li Yingqiong, who wields the Purple Ying Sword!

Upon closer inspection, one can see that Yan Renying has a clear wound on her left forehead, and even her skull shows signs of being dented, indicating that she has suffered a severe injury.

Within the eye sockets of his corpse, a ghostly blue soul flame was still burning.

Faced with this scene, Gong Tianwu was extremely shocked. After all, in his previous lives, he had gone through countless hardships to kill him, and even had to join forces with Qing Shi Rongjian, losing half his life in the process.

This time, however, he didn't even have to lift a finger; a group of his men swarmed him and took care of him instantly.

Such a huge contrast could not help but leave Gong Tianwu deeply moved.
Immediately afterwards, Gong Tianwu beckoned to Li Qiu beside him and said:

"This person was extremely powerful. How did you manage to kill him?"

At this moment, Liqiu, still somewhat shaken, said:

"This person is too strong. At least seventy or eighty of our warriors died at his hands. We also used up thousands of the Earflies we had accumulated before. We only managed to wear him down bit by bit by relying on the Demon Flame Burning Heart."

Gong Tianwu's gaze fell on Yan Renying's hand, and he noticed that the man was holding a radiant short axe, not his Shura Blade.

You must understand that for Yan Renying, this weapon was like Li Yingqiong's Purple Ying Sword or Zhou Qingyun's Green Suo Sword—it was her signature weapon, her forte! There was no way she wouldn't use it even on her deathbed.

So, the truth is... Yan Renying couldn't produce it?
At this moment, Liqiu continued solemnly:

"When this person made his move, his mind was already extremely chaotic. He must have been seriously injured in the previous dimensional portal explosion, which is why he fought to the death against our attacks."

"And I estimate that many of their moves and magical weapons were not used. Otherwise, I estimate that even if all our people were killed, it would be difficult to kill them."

Gong Tianwu nodded and said:
"I can see it."

Another old man also arrived at this time. This man was a master recommended by the monk Guangxiao. He had already reached the innate level before entering the Wulou Guard.

This man was named Dong Su. He had offended a local immortal sect, and his entire family of several hundred people was killed. As a result, he harbored a deep hatred for the people of the immortal sect.

What's even more remarkable is that he was not only loyal to Gong Tianwu, but also possessed outstanding administrative management skills, which ultimately led him to ascend to the position of "Spring Equinox," the most important position in the Shifting Stars system.

Dong Su's expression was also extremely unpleasant at this moment. She knelt down before Gong Tianwu and shouted loudly:

"Your Majesty, I must offer my advice! This man is extremely powerful. If we were to go all out, something unspeakable might happen. It was only because Heaven protected Your Majesty this time that he failed. Your Majesty should..."

Gong Tianwu raised his hand to stop him from continuing:
"I understand what you mean, you're absolutely right! I'll definitely pay attention to that in the future, but there's only one thing you got wrong."

Upon hearing that Gong Tianwu had accepted advice, Dong Su finally breathed a sigh of relief and then said:

"Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."

A cold smile appeared on Gong Tianwu's lips:

"The reason I didn't run into him this time wasn't because I was lucky—it was because Yan Renying was unlucky!"

"This person comes from the main plane of Shu Mountain, and he invaded my Dongxiao Realm in a very violent way. To put it bluntly, these thieves are regarded as a thorn in the side by the Heavenly Dao of this plane."

"If they had gathered together, they might have been protected by the divine powers or magical artifacts bestowed by the Eastern Lord to resist the erosion of this divine wrath. However, after my interference, they scattered into this realm."

"So, to say that these remnants of the Void Eye organization are plagued by misfortune is an understatement. Under the watchful gaze of the Heavenly Dao, they are so unlucky that even drinking cold water can cause them to have trouble getting by!"

After hearing this, Dong Su suddenly realized:

"I see."

Gong Tianwu then looked at Yan Renying and said with a faint smile:

"Send men to dig up the area thoroughly and search it thoroughly. Yan Renying may appear to be dead, but that's not the case. He must have used some secret technique to escape and hide somewhere."

Upon hearing this, Dong Su immediately said sternly:
"Your subject obeys the decree!!"

Then Gong Tianwu's gaze lingered on Yan Renying's corpse for a while. He stepped forward and examined it from head to toe, discovering that the body still had a faint heartbeat and breathing, and the injuries were slowly healing on their own. The person was in a vegetative state.

In this situation, Gong Tianwu instructed his subordinates:
"This body will also be moved back, but first we'll chain it up and then freeze it in the eternal ice."

After this incident, the people on Trap Island lost all will to resist and surrendered dejectedly.

After achieving his goal, Gong Tianwu did not make things difficult for them and simply led his men away.

***
A month later,

The reputation of the Great Qian Empire has spread throughout the world!
After all, this is another world-shaking dynasty that has risen after the Hua Dynasty of yesteryear!

Before this, the leaders of the various states only dared to use the title of "King" and not "Emperor".

The most terrifying thing is that the Great Qian Empire was initially a complete joke, because it only comprised three counties.

Yes, three counties!! Not three prefectures!
However, in just seven days, the territory of the Great Qian Empire had expanded to a terrifying twenty-three prefectures and one hundred and seventeen counties!

Twenty days later, the Great Qian Empire had directly annexed eight kingdoms, occupied thirty-one prefectures, and controlled one hundred and forty-seven counties.

However, by this time, the other nations had recovered from their initial shock, and even the surrounding immortal sects had reacted and begun a joint annihilation campaign.

However, despite Gong Tianwu's seclusion, he already had a wealth of talented people under his command and had made extensive preparations in advance.

There was a matriarch like Yang Qianmin guarding the central palace.

With a true national advisor like Guangxiao Seng, dealing with the situation wasn't too difficult. It's worth mentioning that the Great Qian Dynasty currently boasts eight newly joined top-tier individuals with S-level talents, and two even possess double SS-level talents.

It's important to know that S-level talents are at least those of strong individuals like Cai Yuanchang or Yang Yun.

Of these nine people, four were civil officials and six were military officers. The list is as follows.

Civil servants:

Zhang Baigui (templates Zhang Juzheng + Bao Zheng), with double SS talent, is good at solving cases and reforming, but he is domineering and his reputation is clearly polarized.

Yu Cunzhong (modeled after Shen Kuo) is skilled in invention and creation.

Xie Kaiyou (modeled after Hai Rui) was honest, stubborn, and extremely principled. He was only suitable for a supervisory position. If he were to become a prefect, it would be a disaster for the people's livelihood because he would be clearly biased when judging cases, unconditionally favoring the poor and extremely resenting the rich.

Xu Runping (modeled after Zhao Pu) is a highly skilled political man, adept at recognizing and employing talent, and capable of giving full play to his abilities when in charge of the Ministry of Personnel.

Military generals:

Chen Yunxian (template Gao Shun) is worth mentioning. He is a weaker version of Gao Shun in terms of martial prowess but stronger in terms of strategy. He can still train the special troop type, the Trapped Camp.

Wang Linqi (modeled after Zhou Yafu) excels in defense, enjoys popular support, and is capable of training the special unit, the Xiliu Battalion.

Xue Yuan (modeled after Li Jing) is a more powerful version of Li Jing but less strategic, yet he is still an outstanding general.

Wu Dingzhong (modeled after Li Guang) was extremely skilled in archery and was very cautious in his military strategy, almost never falling into traps. It is generally accepted that the only way to defeat him was through sheer strength on the battlefield.

Ashina Tie (modeled after Li Mu) is a cavalry general who has reached Li Mu's level in the use of cavalry and is good at winning by surprise. If you encounter a stalemate, sending him will be very effective.

Lin Pengsheng (template is Yue Fei), SS talent. His strategic and military talents are even superior to Yue Fei's, but he cannot train the special Yue Family Army.

Because he came from a wealthy family and was fond of luxury and fine clothes, he was quite indulgent towards his soldiers after the war, which conflicted with the fundamental principle of Yue Fei's army: "We would rather freeze to death than dismantle houses, and starve to death than plunder."

Otherwise, this person would be able to rival Chen Shengzhi.

***
Incidentally, three years ago, Gong Tianwu encountered a rare military genius who fought Chen Shengzhi for half a day without being at a disadvantage, resulting in a draw.

After this battle, this man fought Chen Shengzhi many more times. Although he lost more often than he won, he was still able to keep fighting him.

Such talent aroused Gong Tianwu's interest in talent. After investigating, he discovered that the man's name was Guo Jue and that he was quite young, just turned twenty.

Upon closer inspection, I was astonished to find that this person's character model was actually Han Xin!
And this is Han Xin, whose martial prowess is at least 90 points (similar to Zhang He in the Three Kingdoms ranking)!!
However, despite his exceptional talent, he was somewhat arrogant and conceited due to his youth.

Not only that, but it wasn't only Gong Tianwu who had the discerning eye to recognize talent. Guo Jue had already been chosen by the king of this country three years ago, and the king even married his daughter to him.

Under these circumstances, Gong Tianwu ordered the Wulou Guard to take immediate action and find an opportunity to assassinate him.

However, as the saying goes, every loss is a gain. After Guo Jue was killed, Chen Shengzhi successfully captured Qiliguan, which Guo Jue had been guarding.

When Gong Tianwu inspected Qiliguan Prison, he discovered Lin Pengsheng, who had been captured and imprisoned there.

***
So many talented people were put to use by the Great Qian Empire.
In addition, inscription technology has significantly narrowed the gap between mortals and cultivators.

More importantly, the resident cultivation combat power in this plane can only reach the peak of Foundation Establishment!

With these three factors combined, although the situation facing the Great Qian Empire was severe, it quickly recovered after overcoming the initial period of adjustment.

The reason for this is quite simple: following Gong Tianwu's instructions, they were to kill cultivators at all costs!

Once a cultivator dies in battle, it is extremely difficult to replace them. First, a celestial gate initiation ceremony must be held, and then a celestial seed must be selected. Even if the person does not perish and everything goes smoothly, it will still take at least fifty years to reach the Foundation Establishment stage.

Replenishing the warriors on Gong Tianwu's side is too easy—young and strong men suitable for cultivating the Flawless Body, plus medicine and inscribed weapons, can possess the power to threaten Foundation Establishment cultivators in just one year.

Under these circumstances, as time went by, the situation actually stabilized! The Great Qian Empire gained a rare respite and thus ushered in its first grand court assembly.

When the Great Qian Empire was founded, it made Juyan its capital, not because the place was very prosperous, but because it was the most easily defended and difficult to attack place.

Fortunately, Juyan, Luopu, and Yanzhi have become incredibly prosperous thanks to Gong Tianwu's decades of planning and management. Therefore, any one of these three cities is more than capable of serving as a capital.

Weiyang Palace
In the Zichen Palace,

Yang Qianmin, dressed in a bright yellow court robe and wearing a crown with nine dragons and flowers, sat upright on it, with another grand eunuch, Xu Yan, serving her behind her.

The monk Guangxiao stood below, and with a gentle flick of his withered fingers, the seventy-two bronze crane lamps beside him suddenly lit up at the same time.

Xu Yan then looked at Yang Qianmin beside her, questioning her with his eyes. Seeing her nod slightly, he sang loudly:

"Ring the morning bell, sound the whip to silence!"

The forty-eight eunuchs beside him simultaneously rang the bell and cracked their whips, then shouted in unison:

"All in!"

"prosper!!"

"Please instruct me, Empress Duande Shunsheng!!"

Yang Qianmin said calmly:
"Initiate a grand court assembly!"

"Imperial Preceptor, activate the Water Mirror Technique."

The monk Guangxiao nodded slightly, and with a light tap of his finger on the gilded water mirror in front of him, he saw spiritual liquid slowly flowing along the inscriptions in the grooves.

"Hum!"

With a low shout from the current imperial advisor, seventeen water curtains rose from the mirror platform that had been set up nearby.

Then, phantom images began to appear slowly on the water curtain, gradually solidifying into human shapes.

Soon it became clear that these attendees were all important officials stationed throughout the empire to defend against the enemy, and they were all present in a special way through the improved Inscription Water Mirror Technique.

The water mirror that appeared next to Yang Qianmin was, of course, Gong Tianwu.

Next on the list are prominent civil and military officials such as Cui Ziyang, Chen Shengzhi, Yang Yun, Ye Yuanjing, Gong Tianwu, Zhang Baigui, Lin Pengsheng, and Cai Yuanchang.

After Gong Tianwu's illusory image solidified, the assembled officials all bowed respectfully, while he casually said:
"In urgent situations, expediency is necessary; ministers need not be overly formal."

Then Gong Tianwu's eyes fell on Guangxiao:
"The Imperial Advisor is stationed in Zhongdu, managing state affairs, coordinating efforts, and strategizing. Let me first give you a general overview."

Guangxiao nodded, then picked up a document from the side:
"As of today's report, our country currently holds 25 counties and 1012 districts, a loss of 6 counties and 35 districts compared to its peak."

"However, according to accurate statistics, more than 70% of the counties were lost in the first three days of the enemy's counterattack. We were completely caught off guard."

"Yesterday's battle report showed that our army lost eleven counties, but also successfully recovered five counties! It is expected that this pace will slow down further."

Gong Tianwu nodded in satisfaction after hearing this:

"I would like to add that the reason why we have lost territory so quickly in the early stages, including now, is also related to the decrees I issued after becoming emperor. That is, to kill as many enemy cultivators as possible, even if it means using prefectures and counties as bait."

"Without this decree, I believe the amount of lost territory would be 30% less," the Imperial Advisor continued.

Guangxiao changed to another scroll and said:

"To date, our army has defeated 370,000 enemy troops, destroyed eleven countries, and killed 446 members of the immortal sects and 28 Foundation Establishment cultivators."

Yang Qianmin suddenly said:

"The number of Foundation Establishment cultivators killed will increase by five more, because according to the information from the Master, in the past three days, five more seriously injured Foundation Establishment cultivators who escaped failed to suppress the inner demon fire and perished in the cave."

After hearing this, Guangxiao immediately pressed for an answer:
"Were any Foundation Establishment elders of the Flying Snow Sect among those who perished?"

Yang Qianmin said:

"Yes, two of the five are elders of the Flying Snow Sect."

Guangxiao said expressionlessly:

“Very good. The Flying Snow Sect originally only had eight Foundation Establishment cultivators. Four of them died in battle before, and now two more have perished, leaving only two Foundation Establishment cultivators, both of whom are seriously injured. So my contingency plan can be activated at the perfect time.”

Chen Shengzhi said with a stern face:

"My vanguard Tu Kuan and general Yun Wu both died in the sneak attack by the Feixue Sect. Does the Grand Preceptor have any backup plans he can tell me?"

Guangxiao said calmly:
"Nothing more than using one tiger to devour another. The Flying Snow Sect's training ground is located on Cloud Stop Ridge, where there is a Grade 4 spiritual vein and a spiritual mine with a considerable surplus!"

"More importantly, Feixue Sect's training ground was also seized from Linquan Sect eighty years ago, and they even used dishonest means."

"At this time, Linquan Sect already has four Foundation Establishment cultivators, who have long coveted Feixue Sect's training ground. All we need to do is leak this information, and Linquan Sect will naturally take care of things."

Chen Shengzi took a deep breath and said:
"Good, very good!! The day the Flying Snow Sect is driven out of Cloud Resting Ridge will also be the day they are wiped out!!"

Gong Tianwu also said at this time:
"If that's the case, then the destruction of the Flying Snow Sect should happen very soon."

"At that time, relevant publicity channels such as Northwest Miscellany, Business Travel Insights, World News, Qingyun Miscellany, etc. must be used to spread the news about Feixuemen as soon as possible."

The chief eunuch Xu Yan immediately knelt down and said:
"This servant obeys the decree!! The whole world must know that those who rush to the front like the Flying Snow Sect, acting like dogs, will be swallowed up by the other sects."

After hearing this, Gong Tianwu nodded in satisfaction and said:

"That's exactly what I mean. Don't underestimate the power of propaganda. If used properly, it can be worth at least 100,000 soldiers."

All the ministers nodded in agreement.

Guangxiao continued:
"Currently, there are three major forces and seventeen immortal sects launching attacks against us. However, among these immortal sects, the most influential are Wutai, Qingcheng Bieyuan, Zhushanmen, Baigudong, and Dafangmen."

"We are now divided into three major war zones."

"His Majesty is the commander of the Northern War Zone. The enemy they face is the coalition led by Anguo. The immortal sects they need to deal with are: Wutai Mountain, Qingcheng Villa, Yunshan Residence, Hunyuan Mountain, and Buzhou Temple."

"The commander of the Western War Zone is Marquis Wei Ping (Chen Shengzhi). The enemy they face is the allied forces of Xun Kingdom and Chang Kingdom. The immortal sects they need to deal with are Bixiao Sect, Feixue Sect, Baigu Cave, Yinfeng Valley, Huanmu Tower, and Yue'er Palace."

"The commander of the Eastern War Zone is Marquis Jiping (Ye Yuanjing). The enemy they face is the allied forces of Xingguo, Xiongguo, and Daiguo. The immortal sects they need to deal with are Zhushan Sect, Qingyuan Mountain, Dafang Sect, Liehuo Banner, Longxiang Temple, and Jiuli Palace."

"Now, each commander will briefly describe the current situation. Your Majesty, please speak first."

The conversation that followed lasted for more than an hour, and to summarize:
The situation in the Northern Theater Command has been stabilized.

Although Gong Tianwu has to deal with the Zhushan Sect and Qingcheng Courtyard, the Zhushan Sect is a major evil sect, while the Qingcheng Courtyard is a pillar of the righteous path. If the two sides don't beat each other senseless when they meet, then they're lucky if they don't fight each other to the bone. Cooperation is even more impossible.

In addition, Gong Tianwu is currently at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage, cultivates a top-tier technique like the Yuan Magnetic Golden Chapter, and has a large group of fearless Wulou Guards by his side, so the pressure he actually faces is not that great.

In particular, when Gong Tianwu appeared, he led twenty-four members of the "Star Shift" team and several hundred Wulou Guards, and killed the four Foundation Establishment cultivators of Qingcheng Villa.

Moreover, in military matters, Gong Tianwu had talented commanders like Lin Pengsheng (modeled after Yue Fei) and Xue Yuan (modeled after Li Jing), so he could simply delegate authority and trust them.

In the Western Theater, where the cultivation forces are significantly weaker, the situation under Chen Shengzhi's command has become 60/40. Once Guangxiao Seng's scheme takes effect, a 70/30 split is just around the corner.

However, the situation in the Eastern Theater Command is clearly inferior. The current situation can be described as having only defensive capabilities and no ability to counterattack, and they are being completely suppressed.

Ye Yuanjing's side can only rely on city defenses to wage a war of attrition against the enemy, with almost no possibility of counterattack.

Fortunately, he was skilled at commanding infantry, and had a great general under his command, Wang Linqi—whose model was a great talent like Zhou Yafu—so there shouldn't be any major problems in the short term.

Upon hearing Ye Yuanjing's complaints, Gong Tianwu took them very seriously. He instructed the logistics department to go all out to provide Ye Yuanjing with essential supplies.

On the other hand, another strategy was devised for Ye Yuanjing: to trade space for time.

Everything should be done to delay the enemy and buy time. If necessary, it is acceptable to abandon a few counties or even the prefecture capital.

To ensure Ye Yuanjing had an explanation to give to his subordinates, Gong Tianwu even wrote a handwritten note, which was then quickly sent to the Eastern War Zone using a special method. The note contained seventeen characters:

If people survive and land is lost, both people and land will survive.
If the land is saved and people are lost, both people and land will be lost.

Feeling the kindness shown to him by Gong Tianwu, Ye Yuanjing was instantly moved to tears, as if he were a drowning person surfacing to take a deep breath.

After all, he had read the battle reports of the past ten days. The other war zones had begun to recover lost territory and were advancing triumphantly, but the Eastern War Zone, which he was in charge of, was still being suppressed and would inevitably remain so in the short term.

Putting everything else aside, public opinion and morale within the army are unstable, and there are definitely voices questioning his ability to be the commander-in-chief.

He dared not, and could not, bear the blame for the loss of cities and territories, the defeat of his army, and the disgrace of his country.

With Gong Tianwu's endorsement, the burden on his shoulders suddenly became much lighter.

(End of this chapter)