He has been reincarnated through countless worlds, adorned with billions of mythological terms!

The servant dared not ask any more questions and bowed as he withdrew.

Zhou Zhen stood there, looking at the garden full of flowers, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Ten people.

The one on the grasslands, the one who massacred the city, the one in Jiangnan, and that little emperor...

He knew that these people would eventually have a fight.

Before that battle, he wanted to go and see the young emperor.

Let's see what kind of person he really is.

Let's see if he's worth our time.

Or—see if we can use him to get rid of the others.

……

Kyoto, the Imperial Palace.

Yun Yi sat in the imperial study, surrounded by a pile of memorials in front of him.

This is the third day since he ascended the throne.

He has barely slept for three days.

It's not that I don't want to sleep, it's that I can't sleep.

Four hundred thousand cavalrymen from the grasslands have already marched south, with their vanguard less than three hundred li from the border.

The Jiangnan Tiangong Army, numbering 150,000, is advancing northward along the Grand Canal, capturing three cities in succession.

The demonic cultivator in the northern border who massacred cities has just slaughtered two more cities, resulting in over 50,000 deaths and injuries.

The troops he could command—30,000 Imperial Guards and less than 300,000 border troops combined—were scattered across various locations, making it impossible to mobilize them in time.

What's more troublesome is that the national treasury is empty, public resentment is boiling, officials in various places are in a state of panic, and those old ministers who are sitting on the fence in the court are starting to make trouble again.

He thought it would be difficult to be an emperor.

But I never imagined it would be this difficult.

"His Majesty."

Yue Dan entered the imperial study, knelt on one knee, and said, "Urgent report from the border."

Yun Yi raised his head:

"explain."

"The iron cavalry of the grasslands has broken through Yunzhou, and the three thousand defending troops have been completely wiped out."

"The prefect of Yunzhou...died for the city."

Yun Yi's fingers paused slightly.

Three thousand people.

completely annihilated.

The prefect died defending the city.

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked:

"How old is that Sirius Khan?"

Yue Dan was stunned for a moment:

"According to intelligence... he is thirteen years old."

Thirteen years old.

She's the same age as him.

A glint flashed in Yun Yi's eyes.

The Eye of Destiny cannot see people from thousands of miles away, but it can guess that the Heavenly Wolf Khan is most likely a reincarnated being.

"How much longer can they hold out on the grasslands?"

Yue Dan lowered his head:

"At most... one month."

"A month later, 400,000 iron cavalrymen were at the city gates."

Yun Yi nodded:

"What about Jiangnan?"

"The Tiangong Army has captured Xuzhou and is advancing towards Yanzhou."

"Their firearms..."

Yue Dan paused for a moment, then said, "I sent someone to check it out. That thing is called a 'firearm,' and it can shoot iron pellets that can kill a person from a hundred paces away."

"Our soldiers had never seen such a weapon before, and they collapsed at the first touch."

Yun Yi's fingers tapped lightly on the table.

Musket.

Yun Yi was aware of this.

From the beginning, he guessed that the other party was a scientist—or at least someone with a deep understanding of firearms.

But a trial a year ago dispelled this suspicion.

He then dispatched sixteen personal guards specifically to gather intelligence.

Although these people did not consume much of the nation's fortune, only one hundred points each, in this ancient world, they were definitely elites at the level of a dimensional reduction attack.

In the end, only three returned alive.

He wasn't shot to death.

He was killed by a more savage force—not one person, but a warrior of at least fifty.

In addition to the account of the three guards, they saw a silver-white building that looked somewhat like it was made of iron.

Yun Yi's finger stopped on the table.

The building is silvery-white.

Soldiers far surpassing those of this world.

Mutants, or gene-editing agents?

He had seen these things countless times in online novels before he transmigrated.

But when they actually appeared before him and became the enemies he had to face, the sense of oppression was completely different.

On the grasslands, there were 400,000 wolf packs and 400,000 cavalry; it was all about sheer numbers.

The northern border, with its massacres and devastation, is a place of utter depravity.

Jiangnan... is all about the overwhelming force of civilization.

They arrive in a world where technology far surpasses that of their time, a world where even firearms haven't been invented yet.

What can she accomplish in three years?

They can make muskets.

They can build cannons.

It can produce gene-enhancing fluid.

They could even create biological weapons.

Yun Yi closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

This is what he fears most.

No matter how strong an individual's military strength is, if he has the fate of the nation, he will always find a way to deal with it.

But biological weapons are different.

That thing is unreasonable.

Once it spreads, the entire Great Yan Dynasty and its hundreds of millions of citizens will become her bargaining chips.

By then, the nation's fortunes had plummeted, and he, the emperor, had become utterly isolated.

"His Majesty?"

Yue Dan's voice pulled him back from his reverie.

Yun Yi opened his eyes, his gaze as calm as ever.

"What's going on in the north?"

Yue Dan's expression turned serious:

"That demon... slaughtered two more cities."

"Dingzhou and Jizhou were completely wiped out; not a single person survived."

"The dead...more than 53,000 people."

Yun Yi nodded, his face expressionless.

Fifty-three thousand people.

Adding to the previous forty-one cities and 320,000 people.

Now, it's 370,000.

A number.

But behind every number is a living, breathing person.

They have parents, children, worries, and dreams.

Now, it's all gone.

"His Majesty……"

Yue Dan hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

Yun Yi raised his head and looked at him:

"What do you want to say?"

Yue Dan gritted his teeth and finally spoke:

"Your Majesty, if I may be so bold as to ask—what do you intend to do?"

"Four hundred thousand iron cavalry on the grasslands, one hundred and fifty thousand Heavenly Craftsmen in Jiangnan, and that demon in the North."

"Three threats are approaching simultaneously."

He paused, his voice lowering:

"I am not afraid of death, I...I..."

"It is truly unbearable to see the people of Great Yan suffering such misery."

Yun Yi remained silent for a moment.

"Commander Yue."

"Your subject is here."

"You've been with me for three years, what kind of person do you think I am?"

Yue Dan was stunned.

He had never thought about this question.

What kind of person?

diligence?

Resilience?

A far-sighted plan?

It is both, and neither is.

He thought for a moment and answered honestly:

"Your Majesty, I cannot see through you."

Yun Yi slowly stood up and walked to the window.

Outside the window, the sky was a hazy gray, hanging low.

"It's been three years."

His voice was very soft, as if he were talking to himself, "I've been waiting."

"Let them make the first move."

"Wait until they show a weakness."

"Wait for them—"

He paused.

After a moment, he continued:

"Killing each other."

Yue's single pupil constricted slightly.

"Your Majesty means..."

Yun Yi did not turn around.

"I need time more than they do."

He gazed out the window at the gray expanse, "But now, they won't even give me this much time."

He turned around.

When my gaze fell on Yue Dandan, it suddenly felt heavy.

"I can wait."

He said, "But the people of Da Yan can't wait any longer."

After he finished speaking, the room fell silent for a moment.

"Since they won't give me time—"

Yun Yi's voice wasn't loud, but it sounded like a final, decisive statement:

"Then I'll show them clearly whose world this Great Yan truly belongs to."