A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

"Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!"

Ardashir recognized the soldier in front of him; it seemed he was the one who had shouted "no good" earlier.

"What is it now?"

"Your Majesty, I am well."

Ardashir added.

"Your Majesty, the Roman Empire has dispatched ten eagle-legion legions and dozens of barbarian legions, under the pretext of avenging the Parthian Empire as allies, to launch a massive attack on our country. They have already captured Edessa and are currently besieging Calay. The garrison commander of Calay is requesting reinforcements!"

"What?!!"

"What the Roman Empire has gone mad about?!"

"The threat from the Han Empire is imminent, what's wrong with him? Why would he want to start a war with my Sassanid Empire at this time!"

"And allies? If it weren't for the threat from the Han Empire, the Roman and Parthian Empires would have fought tooth and nail!"

This bad news caused Ardashir to lose all composure as the emperor of his empire and unleash a torrent of curses.

The Sasanian army has returned to the eastern front, and Ctesiphon has also left behind a large force, but this force is to guard against the Han cavalry.

There's simply no way to send them out to support Kalley.

In order to deal with the massive offensive of the Han Empire, he had to transfer all his troops there, leaving very few troops on the western defense line.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to muster over a million troops to send to the front lines.

With the Han Empire and the Roman Empire attacking from two sides, even if Ardashir was unwilling to believe it, the worst-case scenario had already occurred.

"That fool Severus! If the Sassanid Empire falls, the Roman Empire will be next!"

"Summon the heads of the six noble families for a meeting!"

At Ardashir's summons, the other six nobles swiftly arrived at the palace.

Ardashir explained the current situation to them one by one, and the heads of the six noble families looked extremely grim.

"Your Majesty, please tell us, what do you need us to do?"

Ardashir had already proven himself, and they didn't believe they could be better than Ardashir.

Moreover, they already knew that the empire was at a critical juncture of life and death, and that only by uniting as one could they have a glimmer of hope.

If the empire were to perish, the common people would be fine, but for these top nobles, it would certainly mean certain death.

"Hand over all your private soldiers, promulgate wartime regulations, and forcibly conscript soldiers, one in five."

"I have been studying the history of the Han Empire recently. Before the Han Empire, there was an empire called Qin in that land. The reason why this empire was able to unify the world was because of the military merit system."

"I intend to replicate this system in the Sasanian Empire, establishing titles and rewards."

"For each promotion in rank, one would be granted 60 acres of land, a mansion, and a servant."

"Those who possess a noble title can be exempted from corvée labor, enjoy a very high political status, and can even use their title to atone for their crimes."

"Those without a title must bow to those with a title. The highest title one can attain is that of a king, who will then receive a fiefdom of his own!"

After hearing Ardashir's words, the six nobles looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Your Majesty, how difficult is it to obtain the title of King?"

They don't want too many people climbing up to their level.

"In that empire, only one person truly rose from an ordinary commoner to the highest noble rank: Bai Qi, known as the God of Slaughter. Nearly a million people died directly or indirectly at the hands of his legions!"

"Hiss! A million!"

The six noble families felt a chill run down their spines, and goosebumps rose on their skin.

The entire Parthian Empire had a population of barely 10 million, and this man named Bai Qi alone killed one-tenth of them.

Of course, this does not include the hidden population figures of their various noble families.

If such a person were to be listed alongside them, they would have no objections whatsoever, and might even feel somewhat unworthy.

Sure enough, there are no wrong nicknames, only wrong names; he truly deserves the title of God of Slaughter.

"Then we have no objections."

The six noble families nodded in unison. Even if such a ruthless person had emerged, they were not without tolerance.

"We need your help with the conscription. The empire is now at a critical juncture, facing a life-or-death crisis. I urge you all to join hands with me to restore the empire's glory!"

Relying on the prestige of the seven noble families accumulated over hundreds of years, the Sasanian Empire once again mobilized a million soldiers, most of whom were contributed by the noble families themselves, consisting of their farmers, slaves, and private troops.

By deploying these million soldiers, the Sassanid Empire's war potential has been almost completely exhausted. Almost all of the country's working-age population has been conscripted into the army. If any of these million soldiers were to encounter problems, the country would face a severe shortage of young and able-bodied men.

This almost means that the country has already perished.

"The Han Empire has deployed fewer than 100,000 elite cavalry in this area, so there is no need to worry too much. It is enough for Ctesiphon to leave only 100,000 troops."

"This battle will determine the life or death of the empire. I must personally lead the army to defeat the Roman Empire."

"I'll leave the domestic affairs to you all."

Ardashir summoned the six noble families together once again, entrusting the fate of the entire nation to them.

Apart from him, no one in the Sasanian Empire could lead this million-strong, hastily assembled army to repel the ferocious Roman Empire.

Ardashir led his army out of Ctesiphon, and looking back, the setting sun was like blood.

This ancient city, scarred and battered, like the empire itself, has come to an end.

Even the mighty Ardashir had a look of confusion in his eyes. With the weight of ten kings and eighteen provinces on his shoulders, his life had been like walking on thin ice. Could he successfully reach the other side?

He immediately dispelled this confusion. He was the king of this empire, the king of kings. He had to win, and he could only win!

……

On the brutal battlefield, Ardashir gasped for breath, the Sassanid banners fluttering in the wind behind him. He had won the war and recaptured the important front-line town of Khalai.

But there was no smile on his face, because the Roman Empire had lost most of its barbarian legions, and the 10 Eagle Cavalry legions it had sent had not suffered much loss.

Although the war was won, it did not affect the overall strategic situation.

He had a premonition that the Roman Empire would soon make a comeback.

The war on the eastern front was also tightly tied up in Nisa. It is said that the Han Dynasty has sent several powerful generals: Sun Jian, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun, each of whom is a match for ten thousand men.

More importantly, time was of the essence. He had been tied down in the Western Front for nearly six months and had already missed the best time to sow seeds this year.

Although there were elderly people, women, and children in the country sowing the seeds, they were no match for the able-bodied young people. It was foreseeable that the Sasanian Empire's grain production would plummet in the coming year.

How can we fight a war without food?

Next year, the Sassanid Empire will surely be filled with famine and corpses.

The Sasanian Empire inherited the resources of the Parthian Empire, which had been exhausted in years of war. Next year, even its own army would not have enough food, inevitably leading to a mutiny.

The Sasanian Empire was on the verge of collapse!

Ardashir's eyes burned with a fierce fire; he had to win!

Only by tearing a piece of flesh from the Roman Empire could the future survival of the Sasanian Empire be guaranteed.

The troops that were temporarily conscripted were not enough, so he had already withdrawn half of the troops from the eastern front.

The remaining troops fought and retreated, using the fortified city as a defensive tactic to buy time with space.