Alchemists do not need self-cultivation

So what if he's an alchemist? Once he's dead, he can't use alchemy at all. Besides, he'd heard that alchemists need to construct transmutation circles to use alchemy, and he simply doesn't have the time for that now.

Several steam guns clanged as round lead bullets flew toward Isaac from their barrels.

Isaac didn't even glance at the group of warriors; the shadow beneath his feet quickly formed a shield in front of him, blocking all the lead bullets.

"Here you go."

The lead bullet was deflected and then bounced back, piercing the bodies of the samurai who had fired the shots earlier.

At that moment, fear surged into the hearts of everyone present like a tidal wave.

"A monster...a monster!"

"Run! We're no match for him!"

The warriors scattered like birds and beasts, completely ignoring the general who was still sitting in his seat, too frightened to get up.

However, running away was useless. The shadowy figure transformed into a sharp sword and flew towards them swiftly. Before they could run more than a few steps, the warriors had already had their heads cut off.

In an instant, the general's mansion was littered with corpses, and blood stained the once clean ground.

“I…Isaac…” the general said in a trembling voice, “I think…this…”

He seemed to want to salvage the situation, and he wanted to say 'this is a misunderstanding,' but he couldn't bring himself to say it.

A misunderstanding? At least what just happened speaks volumes.

“I gave you your chance long ago. You have to grit your teeth and keep going on the path you chose,” Isaac sneered. “Am I right, General?”

Ignoring the terrified general and the surrounding officials, Isaac picked up the communicator from his pocket and called out, "Violet, are you there?"

"I'm here, Lieutenant General," a voice came through the communicator.

"Fire when the time comes."

"...But the lieutenant general is still inside."

"Don't worry, these shells won't hurt me."

"……Yes."

Violet hung up the communicator after receiving the order.

Meanwhile, the army on the distant coast began to prepare upon seeing the black tentacles rising from the general's mansion.

"Major Eve Garden, is the Lieutenant General alright?"

“No problem,” Violet said. “How much time is left until the stipulated 24 hours?”

"About three minutes left," the soldier said, glancing at his watch.

"Fire at the General's Mansion in three minutes," Violet said. "This is the order the lieutenant general gave before he left."

"Yes!"

After receiving their orders, the soldiers began to walk into the warship.

Before long, all the ship's cannons were once again aimed at the location of the general's mansion.

No one worried about whether Isaac was still there; the long years of combat had already instilled trust in the lieutenant general.

Three minutes passed quickly.

Violet, holding binoculars, looked towards the General's Mansion, gritted her teeth, and shouted, "Fire!"

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Dozens of naval cannons roared, this time targeting not the city walls but the general's mansion.

Every shell hit the general's mansion, turning the building into ruins after a violent shaking. When the time was up, Isaac retracted his shadow and began to defend against the incoming shells.

……

On this day, all the residents of Jingangguo witnessed it. As the center of this post station and a symbol of power, the General's Mansion was reduced to ruins in a single second.

Then, tanks and planes from the sky drove into Jin Gang Guo and surrounded the place.

Isaac emerged from the ruins as if nothing had happened, dragging several officials with him. The Grand General was right there in his grasp.

When he came out, he saw Violet anxiously waiting outside. Upon seeing Isaac, she quickly walked over and hugged him.

"What's wrong?" Isaac asked, puzzled.

“Lieutenant General, don’t give orders like that again,” Violet whispered. “Ordering to fire on a lieutenant general is… painful.”

Isaac paused for a moment, then smiled gently, stroking Violet's hair as she lay on top of him, and said softly, "Forgive me, there won't be a next time."

After a long while, the two parted ways.

Isaac grabbed the general from the ground and slapped him across the face.

"Huh? Ah!!"

The general had just been woken up when Jiu Jing saw Isaac's face and collapsed to the ground, backing away.

"I must say, you're absolutely a genius at wasting my time," Isaac said with a smile, grabbing the general who was trying to retreat further.

"You...you don't come any closer!!"

“I’m a forgiving person, and I can give you a chance to live,” Isaac said with a smile. “Do you want to seize this opportunity?”

The general quickly nodded. He was no longer the powerful figure he once was. He knew that he could only survive by constantly submitting to Isaac.

“I need a puppet to help me govern this land. After all, the people here are useful laborers, and killing them would be a waste of resources.” Isaac said, grabbing the general’s beard, which made him cry out in pain.

“However, I also made it clear to everyone in Japan that Amestris has supreme power in this land. Do you... understand what I mean?”

The words reached the general's ears like a devil's whisper, and he quickly nodded in agreement.

In this bombardment, almost all the warriors of the general's mansion were killed, while the officials survived. In the future, when they faced Isaac and the soldiers of Amestoris, their faces would show nothing but obsequiousness.

Not long after the incident, the general signed a series of unequal treaties with Isaac in full view of everyone.

All the people of Japan know that, on the surface, the ruler of the country is still the general, but in reality, the true ruler is Lieutenant General Isaac.

This country was hierarchical. The powerful had warriors who obeyed them, and these warriors could trample on the common people at will. But now everything is different.

The new hierarchy is: Amestris, nobility, samurai, and then commoners of Japan.

The people of Amestris became the most untouchable force in this land, a truly privileged class.

Chapter 410: The Current Situation in Japan

When the general and Isaac signed a series of unequal treaties, the Amaterasu family, which had once ruled Hinomoto, was now a thing of the past. The true power in Hinomoto was Lieutenant General Amestris—Isaac Yao.

This is something that everyone in Japan must know.

Currently, there are 5,300 Amestris soldiers who have landed in Japan. These 5,300-plus people in blue uniforms are the highest privileged class in the country, and even the country's elites have to bow their heads to them.

This is something that even they themselves are not used to.

In the following weeks, Isaac led his army to sweep through the Kabane regions along the Japanese coast, establishing ports and airports there so that Amestolids could later station troops there.

And now is also the time when it is difficult to get a day off, so soldiers on leave will choose to rest in various post stations.

“Hey, Edwin, let’s go to town and get something to eat,” a soldier said to his comrade. “The lieutenant general gave us two days off anyway.”

“Okay, sure,” his companion agreed.

They were both combat personnel from the newly formed Amestori Army, one of two-person teams flying AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, and they usually liked to operate together.

When they arrived at the post station, the guards immediately stood at attention and shouted, "Welcome, esteemed gentlemen of Amestris! I will inform your daimyo immediately..."

"Uh... no need for such an exaggeration, we just came in for a meal." Edwin quickly waved his hand, still unable to get used to the behavior of these warriors.

"Yes...it was my fault for being so talkative!"

"I told you it's nothing...really." He looked at the samurai who was practically kneeling down with a headache.

The soldiers of Amestoris are seen as superior to the elite, and they must react upon seeing their iconic blue uniforms.

This is what Isaac said before signing the treaty: Amestoris has supreme power in this land.

As they entered the city, they saw that the civilians who were originally on the road suddenly stood in a close line around them, making way for them.

"..." Edwin covered his face.

"Well, you'll get used to it." His companion chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. "I was pretty embarrassed the first time I went into town to buy alcohol."

"...Since this isn't your first time here, you should know which restaurant has the best food, right?" Edwin said helplessly.

All he wanted to do now was finish eating quickly and get back to the makeshift military camp.

“That shop,” he said, pointing to a small shop. “It’s called something like Izakaya in this country. They have alcohol and food there. Since we wiped out the Kaba people outside, there’s a lot more food available, including seafood.”

"Let's go with this one then."

"By the way," his companion said, putting his arm around his shoulder and whispering in his ear, "the shop owner's daughter is also very cute."

"...Can't you always think about women?"

"I'm giving you a hint, you single guy, because I'm a married man now." He gave a knowing smile. "Anyway, with my current status, it's just a matter of snapping my fingers if you want to date any girl in this country."

"...How the hell did I end up with a companion like you?"

--------------

The soldiers of Amestris went from initially being unaccustomed to life in Japan to thoroughly enjoying it, with a very short transition period in between.

The only one who was somewhat unhappy was Isaac.

In the makeshift military camp, Isaac held a report and looked at the captains of the dozen or so teams in front of him.

"We've been operating in Japan for a month now, and everyone has performed well. The speed at which we're eliminating the Kabane has only increased," Isaac said, looking at the report. "So far, we know that we've eliminated 114,000 Kabane, including one enormous unidentified creature. This is commendable."

Snap snap snap snap snap snap!

The audience applauded.

“However, it’s worth mentioning your lifestyle issues here.” Isaac opened the report, his face darkening.

Everyone swallowed hard when they saw Isaac's face, and they began to tense up.

"Because of our special status in Japan, you are seen as high-ranking officials of the original country by those civilians. To ensure you don't cause trouble, I have given you a strict order: no rape, no looting, and no eating without paying," Isaac said. "You are all worthy of being soldiers of Amestris; none of you have committed any crimes."

"Of course, we are soldiers representing the country, how could we do such a thing?" the people below echoed.

"I'm very satisfied with this aspect, and I've heard that many soldiers here have already found partners."