I am the sacred tree, evergreen for eternity.

The stone doors of the council hall were open, and people were seated on both sides of the long stone table.

Provincial governors, tribal elders, border patrol commanders... dozens of faces flickered in the afternoon light.

The debate has been going on for most of the day.

"...The intelligence sent back by the pioneer team is about the Forgetful Man who once caused a great disturbance at the festival—that monster called the Sin Eater."

"Even the combined forces of dozens of tribes in the wasteland could only repel its clones."

"Where the true body is hidden, how strong it is, and what methods it uses... are all shrouded in mystery."

An elder with a withered face rested his hands on the table, his voice as hard as stone.

"I'm not saying we shouldn't fight... but we need to figure out the situation first before we can discuss sending reinforcements."

"What if we rashly mobilize the entire nation to attack, and something goes wrong..."

"What if what?" A burly middle-aged man across from him slammed his hand on the table and stood up.

"Will it wait until it has devoured and fattened up all those alien races on the wasteland before coming back to gnaw on us?"

"you--"

That's enough.

Qi's voice wasn't loud, but the two words fell, and the entire council hall fell silent instantly.

He stood in front of the map of mountains and seas hanging on the wall, his back to the crowd.

My gaze fell on a gray area thousands of miles away on the large map, marked as "unknown".

There, a new fork was added, painted red with animal blood.

Eat sins.

Qi turned around, his gaze sweeping over every face.

Those faces showed anxiety, hesitation, and the remaining sharpness after the years had smoothed out their edges.

"You have all seen the information Elder Xuan sent back."

"That thing's tentacles have already reached our doorstep."

"How many monsters roam freely in places we can't see, waiting to devour us?"

The question was pointed, and no one could answer it.

"The true form of the Devourer is still dormant, waiting for it to awaken..."

"We have nowhere to retreat."

Someone in the council chamber swallowed hard.

An elder of similar age to Xuan slowly spoke up: "Does the Grand Commander mean... to fight?"

"It's not fighting," Qi said, his gaze sharp as a knife. "It's war."

He walked to the stone table, leaning forward slightly, like a cheetah about to pounce.

"The Xia Kingdom has never been afraid of battle."

"Not before, not now, and certainly not in the future."

His voice suddenly rose in pitch.

"In the name of the President, I hereby declare—"

"Exterminating 'Sin Eaters' is considered a national war!"

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

Someone spoke up, their voice hesitant: "But those pioneer teams... they were already criminals..."

Qi's gaze shifted in that direction.

He didn't get angry, and there wasn't even a change in his emotions.

He simply looked calmly at the young town garrison commander who had uttered those words.

That was a newly appointed official in the Southern Xinjiang Province, in his early forties.

They did not experience the years in the Valley of the Divine Tree, nor did they witness the flames of war between the four tribes.

"You're right," Qi said, his voice still calm. "They are indeed guilty."

"But now, they are shedding blood for the entire Xia Kingdom."

His voice gradually rose in pitch, like a struck bronze bell, echoing throughout the council chamber.

"And what are we doing?"

"Sitting in a stone house in the royal city, drinking millet wine, eating roasted meat, and discussing 'whether or not to provide support'?"

The young garrison commander's face flushed red, and he lowered his head.

Qi Zhi got up, walked to the door, and looked at the tree branch of the tree god on the altar, which was bathed in spiritual light.

The emerald green leaves swayed gently in the autumn breeze, just as always.

He didn't turn around, but his voice clearly reached the ears of everyone present.

"For so many years, we've been sheltered under the tree god's protection, like children."

"Now……"

"It's time to wean her!"

No one spoke in the council chamber anymore.

The elderly people who had weathered many storms all turned their gaze toward the altar.

The tree spirit's light still shines, like a pair of eyes that have traversed countless years, quietly watching over all of this.

Qi turned around and walked back to the stone table.

"Pass down the order—"

"Effective immediately, the Xia Kingdom enters a state of war preparedness!"

The news spread faster than the wind.

Within three days, the same topic was being discussed throughout the streets and alleys of the capital.

Recruitment, selection, war.

"Have you heard? The President is going to conscript the expeditionary force to support the pioneering teams."

"It's not a recruitment, it's a selection process. It's a competition, and only those who win can go."

"Isn't that suicide? I heard over there..."

"Shhh-keep it down."

An old hunter who was wiping his knife looked up at them but didn't say anything.

He held the blade up to his eyes, examined the edge against the sunlight, then took a whetstone from his waist and continued sharpening it.

The sound of metal rubbing against metal echoed in the teahouse, one sound after another, steady and powerful.

Registration office at the central training ground of the royal city.

The clerk in charge of registration sat behind a stone table, with a roll of animal hide covered with names spread out in front of him, and he had already gone through several charcoal pencils.

He looked up at the long queue in front of him, and his lips twitched involuntarily.

"Those who arrive later, please go to the side and get a number."

"We're full for today, so let's go earlier tomorrow."

Discontented murmurs could be heard from within the group, but no one left.

A boy who looked no more than sixteen or seventeen years old stood in the middle of the line, wearing a faded linen short coat and a gleaming short knife hanging at his waist.

His face still carried a touch of youthful naiveté, but his eyes shone with an unbelievable brightness.

A companion of similar age nudged him with his elbow.

"Does your father know you're here?"

The boy grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.

"I'll tell him when I get selected."

"What if he disagrees?"

"Then I will say... Tree God above, your son is unfilial."

The boy patted the hilt of the knife at his waist. "I'll apologize to him when I come back alive."

His companion opened his mouth, as if to say something.

In the end, he just shook his head and smiled.

At the end of the line, a burly man squatted on the ground.

A double-edged battle axe lay before him, and he was carefully wiping the blade with a piece of animal hide.

Someone recognized him as the vice-captain of a hunting team in the Northern Province.

His cultivation level, at the peak of the Body Forging Realm, made him somewhat famous in the area.

"You're about to be promoted to captain, why are you joining in the fun?" someone asked from the side.

The burly man raised his head, revealing a face etched with deep lines by the elements.

"My elder brother followed Chief Xuan across the desolate mountains and seas back then."

"And then?"

"He never came back."

The burly man lowered his head and continued wiping his knife. "I'm going to go find him and bring him back."

The people around fell silent.

The group moved forward in silence.

One by one, they registered, received their numbers, and left.

No one complained, and no one backed down.

The night grew deeper.

One torch after another was lit on the drill ground, illuminating people's hearts.

The number of people registering has not decreased.

Instead, it's getting longer and longer...