Looking at the successfully acquired attribute entry, Zhao Feng's face was filled with joy.
"The authority of a world's Heavenly Dao, ruling over an entire realm, and being able to control the world's laws."
"Moreover, it can conceal my fate, making it impossible for anyone to deduce my origins."
"A blue-grade authority once the small world continues to evolve, the authority will surely expand, and the benefits I gain will grow even greater."
"Heavenly Dao, Human Dao..."
"All that's left is Earth Dao."
"Though this Heavenly Dao does not belong to the world I reside in, it is still acceptable."
"There are endless opportunities in the future." Zhao Feng was filled with excitement at the thought.
At this moment, within the small world, the transformation was still ongoing.
With the World Tree taking root, the laws within the Five Spirit Orbs were completely absorbed and integrated into the world.
The entire small world trembled land quaked, void trembled.
The entire world began to expand at an accelerated pace.
Previously, the small world was only five thousand miles in size. Although the inhabitants within could not see its boundaries, Zhao Feng was well aware of its limits.
But now
As the world expanded, the heavens and earth stretched out, and the Five Elements Law began to operate, the small world itself started to generate its spiritual energy.
"The world's evolution is progressing. No need for alarm."
"Continue performing your duties."
The tremors of the world left the inhabitants in panic. Zhao Feng immediately reassured them.
"The Five Elements Law is the fundamental structure of a world. Now that I have the World Tree, I no longer need to oversee the small world personally."
"Let it evolve on its own."
"This ascension should take some time."
"I should enter closed-door cultivation for now."
With this thought, Zhao Feng withdrew his divine sense from the small world, preparing to cultivate in seclusion.
His recent fortune from the treasure chest was significant, and Zhao Feng naturally wanted to seize this opportunity to strengthen himself.
Northern Borders of Qin, Northeastern Frontier!
"By decree of His Majesty"
"Annihilate Tu'an!"
"Are the elite warriors of Great Qin ready for battle?"
Li Mu rode atop his horse, wielding a massive saber, his voice booming like thunder.
"Wind! Wind! Wind!"
"Great Wind!"
Two hundred thousand elite warriors of Qin roared in unison. Though they had been dormant for two years, their killing intent remained undiminished, their military might still be formidable.
"Annihilate Tu'an!"
"Kill!"
With a low shout, Li Mu personally led the army in an assault on Tu'an.
One hundred thousand cavalry from the northern borders rode alongside him, many of them former subordinates of Li Mu.
This battle was not only the first campaign after Li Mu's long period of dormancy it was also his first battle in service to Great Qin.
At the border of Tu'an
Following the abduction of the princess, the "losses of Qin troops," and the revelation that General Jin Feng was the mastermind behind the kidnapping
The entire nation of Tu'an was thrown into unspeakable panic.
The border garrisons of Tu'an retreated to the frontier city, reinforcing it with additional troops.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The earth trembled.
The cavalry of Qin swept across the land like a storm.
Outside the border city of Tu'an
One hundred thousand black-armored Qin cavalry charged forward in a frenzy.
Great Qin had seized all the copper and iron in the world, forging divine weapons for its army.
Now, Qin's military weaponry had undergone a complete transformation, particularly for its cavalry.
The long spears once wielded by the Qin cavalry had been replaced with razor-sharp sabers, capable of both slashing and thrusting. Each soldier was also equipped with a ten-bolt crossbow at their waist.
This was the result of two years of internal stabilization and military advancements within Great Qin.
"The Qin army is here!"
"What do we do now?"
"Can we even hold them off?"
Inside the border city of Tu'an, every general and soldier was filled with fear.
To them, Great Qin was a power hundreds, even thousands of times stronger than their own not just in the eyes of their king, but in the minds of ordinary citizens as well.
"The king has given his orders to defend the city at all costs!"
A Tu'an general shouted, "Archers, prepare!"
Terrified yet compelled to follow orders, the Tu'an soldiers readied their defenses.
At the forefront of the Qin army, Li Mu led the charge.
Already possessing the strength of a Grandmaster, he had no fear whatsoever.
"Archers!"
Li Mu roared.
The tactics of the Qin army
Arrows first!
One hundred thousand Qin cavalry raised their repeating crossbows, losing a storm of arrows upon the city.
A torrential downpour of bolts rained down upon the defenders.
Countless Tu'an soldiers were slaughtered under the relentless barrage.
Li Mu closed in on the city gate.
As he neared
"Mountain-Crushing Fist!"
Li Mu raised his left hand, channeled his true energy, and struck a punch from several meters away.
A forceful wave of energy blasted forth.
Boom!
The city gate of Tu'an was shattered by his attack.
"Charge!"
Li Mu roared.
Saber in hand, he urged his warhorse forward, cutting down enemies like a reaper harvesting grain.
With a single slash, the saber's energy cleaved through several meters ahead.
The Qin cavalry followed in an unending tide.
Each soldier wielded a razor-sharp saber, cutting down enemies in a frenzy.
Now, every soldier in the Qin army practiced martial arts. They all cultivated the Dragon Elephant Art even those with poor talent had reached the second or third stage of the Postnatal Realm, while the gifted ones had already reached the seventh or eighth stage.
Although the Postnatal Realm was merely the entry level of martial arts, once a warrior cultivated the Dragon Elephant Art to its peak, they could wield a force of ten thousand jin (over 5,000 kg).
One could only imagine the devastating power of a Qin cavalry soldier's strike.
Even if their sabers couldn't cut through heavy armor, the sheer impact of their blows was enough to crush the armored soldiers within.
This was the terrifying strength of Qin's elite warriors.
"Kill!"
"These foreign barbarians need not be spared anyone who bears a weapon shall be executed!"
"Kill!"
Li Mu shouted coldly.
This slaughter brought him an indescribable sense of pleasure.
After years spent in the stronghold of Yan Court, returning to the battlefield was intoxicating.
Moreover, this campaign was against foreign invaders outside the Divine Continent, giving Li Mu no reservations.
"Kill! Kill!"
The Qin cavalry roared in unison, butchering their foes without restraint.
The entire border city of Tu'an became a blood-soaked battlefield
The might of Qin had arrived.
...
Tu'an Capital City
"Report!"
"Your Majesty, bad news!"
"The border city has been breached by the Qin army."
"The Qin army is advancing towards our cities, and we are unable to stop them. At most, they will reach the capital in half a month!"
A Tu'an general rushed in, his face filled with panic.
On the throne, King Tu'an's expression was dark with anger and deep concern.
His gaze shifted to the minister below Jin Feng his eyes filled with fury.
"General Jin!"
"At this point, do you still have nothing to say?" King Tu'an asked, suppressing his rage.
"Your Majesty!"
"I swear I did not send assassins to abduct the princess, nor did I attack the Qin army! Please, Your Majesty, see the truth!"
"This is nothing but Qin's false accusation!"
Jin Feng immediately defended himself loudly.
At this stage, there was no way he would admit it.
As long as he denied any involvement, and with his influence in court, no one not even King Tu'an would dare move against him.
Seeing Jin Feng still refusing to confess, King Tu'an was furious, but there was nothing he could do.
"The Qin army is overwhelming. What should we do now?" he asked his ministers.
"Your Majesty!"
"The Qin state has refused to meet our envoys. They are truly enraged."
"The Qin army is too strong. Our troops are no match for them. At this point, surrender is our only option."
"Indeed, Your Majesty!"
"We stationed 100,000 troops at the border city, but they were defeated in just one day."
"The Qin army is led by Li Mu, the same general who once crushed the Xiongnu. His command is unmatched. Our small nation is no match for Qin. Please reconsider!"
As soon as the topic of surrender was brought up, many Tu'an officials immediately supported the idea.
To them, Qin was invincible. If the capital was taken by force, they would all perish.
Voluntary surrender and forced surrender were entirely different matters.
"Is surrender the only way?" King Tu'an struggled internally, his face full of helplessness.
"Your Majesty!"
"We still have over 100,000 soldiers, and Tu'an and Goryeo share the same ancestry. We can ask Goryeo for help!" Jin Feng hurriedly suggested upon hearing talks of surrender.
He was the one who ordered the princess's abduction, and the Qin army had already extracted the truth from their captives. If they surrendered, he would not escape punishment.
"If we don't surrender, what other choice do we have?"
"That is Li Mu leading the invincible Qin army!"
"100,000 troops? How can we stop them?"
"Would Goryeo even dare to send reinforcements?" King Tu'an frowned. Like his ministers, he had already made up his mind to surrender.
"Your Majesty!"
"We must not surrender!" Jin Feng continued to plead.
"To prevent a massacre of our people, surrender is our only option."
"I decree send an envoy to meet the Qin general and express our willingness to surrender."
King Tu'an sighed and announced his decision.
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Upon hearing the decision, the ministers all voiced their agreement.
Jin Feng, however, turned pale, his face extremely grim.
Xianyang - The Grand Court Assembly
"Your Majesty!"
"General Li Mu has sent back a victory report!"
"In just five days, our forces have conquered 18 cities in Tu'an. Within five more days, we will reach their capital."
"However…"
"King Tu'an is afraid. He has sent envoys to express his desire to surrender."
Yu Liao stepped forward and reported loudly.
Hearing this, Emperor Ying Zheng smiled slightly, unsurprised.
The strength of the Qin army was undeniable.
Only the enemy truly understood the terror of facing Qin's forces.
With overwhelming power, even the once-mighty Zhao state would have fallen before them, let alone a small nation like Tu'an.
This was the strength of Qin!
"If Tu'an wishes to surrender, then we shall grant them the opportunity."
"Order General Li Mu to accept their surrender."
"However, the general responsible for ambushing our forces Jin Feng must be handed over by King Tu'an. His entire clan shall be exterminated!" Ying Zheng declared coldly.
The might of Qin must not be challenged.
No one could insult or defy Qin without paying the price.
"Your Majesty," Yu Liao suddenly spoke, his eyes gleaming with an idea.
"Speak." Ying Zheng turned to him.
"We should let Jin Feng know that Qin intends to exterminate his entire clan."
"Brilliant!"
"Jin Feng, despite losing power, still has some influence in Tu'an. If he learns that Qin will wipe out his entire family, he will undoubtedly flee."
"Since he has fought against the Donghu (Eastern Hu) for years, he will not seek refuge there."
"His only choice would be to flee to Goryeo."
"This… would give Qin the perfect justification to attack Goryeo!" Li Si said with a smile.
Ying Zheng smirked. "Approved."
"I will immediately relay the order to General Li Mu!" Yu Liao responded promptly.
"Tu'an and Goryeo together…"
"They have a combined population of nearly eight million."
"These people must be put to good use." Ying Zheng mused.
He had no intention of treating them the same way as his Han subjects.
For them, a harsher fate awaited.
The future Qin empire would be centered around the Han people.
"Your Majesty,"
"We may also employ a strategy of using barbarians to rule over barbarians," Lü Buwei suggested thoughtfully.
"Oh? What do you propose, Chancellor Lü?" Ying Zheng's eyes lit up with interest.
"Since King Tu'an has surrendered, we might as well allow him to continue ruling."
"However, his authority must be severely reduced. He may govern civil affairs, but military control must remain with Qin."
"All tributes must be sent to Qin."
"Furthermore, we must not be lenient towards these foreign tribes."
"Your Majesty has shown great benevolence to the Han people, reducing taxes to ten percent. However, for these foreigners, we should impose taxes of seventy or even eighty percent."
"Additionally, we should increase their commercial taxes."
"They must not be allowed to keep armies. Instead, their young men should be conscripted for labor to build Qin's great roads."
"While Qin's Han citizens serve only two years of corvée labor, these foreigners should serve five years."
...
Lü Buwei smiled and directly presented his idea.
Hearing this,
Ying Zheng's eyes lit up.
"This method is excellent."
"What a brilliant strategy using barbarians to rule barbarians."
"In this way, our Great Qin will not need to send too many people to govern these small countries, only some stationed troops and a few key officials." Ying Zheng laughed.
"The Prime Minister speaks wisely."
"Foreign tribes cannot be treated with the same benevolence as our Huaxia people."
"Now it is Tu'an, next will be Goryeo."
"In the future, there will be even more foreign tribes, and we can use the same method letting them rule themselves while we extract their manpower and resources."
"And as the Crown Prince once said, in the future, our Great Qin will promote martial cultivation. These foreign tribes must not be allowed to practice our martial arts." Han Fei immediately added.
"Indeed."
Ying Zheng nodded. "Martial cultivation is the foundation of Great Qin's strength. How can we allow foreign tribes to touch it?"
Then, a thought struck him.
"Pass my decree."
"From this day forward, within the territory of Great Qin, non-Huaxia people foreigners are forbidden from cultivating martial arts. If they do, the nation's fate shall sound an alarm, and they shall be executed on the spot."
"From this day forward, within the territory of Great Qin, anyone whose fate is not integrated into the empire's national fortune is forbidden from practicing our martial arts. If they do, they shall suffer a martial backlash and die instantly."
"My decree shall be respected throughout Great Qin!"
As Ying Zheng's words fell,
A divine edict materialized in the air.
With the seal of the Imperial Jade Seal, the decree was stamped.
Immediately, the edict merged into the void, affecting the entire Great Qin realm.
This was an invocation of the nation's fate to mobilize the power of human laws.
Ying Zheng's decree was the very embodiment of Great Qin's laws of humanity.
The issuance of this decree was inspired by the previous incident where spirit valley rice could not grow outside Great Qin's borders.
Since even Spirit Valley rice could be restricted, so too could martial arts.
Foreigners must not cultivate the martial arts of Great Qin!
Ying Zheng feared that one day, foreign tribes might rise against them.
"Those who are not of our race will always have different hearts!"
As for the Huaxia people who had yet to integrate their fate into the national fortune, they referred to the remnants of the Six Kingdoms and their descendants. How could they be allowed to cultivate martial arts?
These two decrees effectively blocked the path of martial cultivation for the remnants of the Six Kingdoms and foreign tribes.
Within the Great Qin Empire, they could not cultivate. If they did, they would perish.
And if they left Great Qin's territory?
Perhaps they could cultivate.
But the martial arts spread among the people were only basic techniques with no advanced realms. Both Ying Zheng and Zhao Feng would be highly cautious about higher-level techniques, granting them only to the truly loyal.
"Your Majesty is wise."
The ministers all loudly praised.
At that moment,
Ren Xiao strode into the hall.
"Report!"
"Your Majesty."
"The former head of the Dan Palace, Xu Fu, has returned."
"He is currently outside Xianyang City but cannot enter without the Tianxuan Mirror."
Ren Xiao reported loudly.
"Xu Fu?"
Ying Zheng frowned, then smirked.
"After all these years, he has finally returned."
"I thought he wouldn't come back."
Ying Zheng spoke slowly, but the ministers could hear the coldness in his tone.
"Summon him."
Ying Zheng ordered.
"Yes."
Ren Xiao immediately obeyed.
Outside Xianyang City.
Looking at the city guards before him,
Xu Fu's face showed a trace of surprise.
"I've been away from the Divine Continent for less than eight years, yet why does it feel like everything has changed?"
"What is this Tianxuan Mirror they speak of?"
"And why do these soldiers have such powerful lifeblood energy? They far surpass ordinary men."
Xu Fu stood outside the city, curiously observing the city guards.
In his perception,
Each of the hundred city guards before him had lifeblood far exceeding that of normal people. If they were in Penglai, they would have been devoured immediately.
"Did the Qin King do something else besides unifying the Divine Continent during these years?"
Xu Fu's heart was filled with doubt.
He had only been away for less than eight years, yet it felt as though the entire Divine Continent had changed.
Even Xianyang had transformed drastically.
At that moment!
Ren Xiao rode out of the city.
"Commander Ren Xiao, it has been a long time."
Seeing Ren Xiao, Xu Fu immediately cupped his fists and smiled.
Clearly,
Having once refined elixirs in the palace, Xu Fu naturally knew Ren Xiao.
"His Majesty has issued a decree."
"Xu Fu, you are summoned to the palace for an audience." Ren Xiao glanced at Xu Fu and spoke coldly.
"Please."
Several imperial guards moved behind Xu Fu, their posture resembling that of guards escorting a prisoner.
"Why does it feel like Ren Xiao's attitude toward me has changed?"
"In the past, he was indifferent, but never this rude."
"Could something have happened in the palace?"
At this moment,
Xu Fu felt an intense sense of unease.
However,
Now that he had returned, and since he had come by order, he had no chance to leave.
As soon as he returned,
Not only did Ren Xiao send word, but both the Black Ice Platform and the Underworld Court had already mobilized.
They were watching from the shadows.
If Xu-Fu showed any signs of fleeing, they would act immediately.
"This man seems strange."
"He has an energy similar to a cultivator's, yet it is not martial cultivation." Ying Bu said slowly.
"You have reached the Grandmaster realm, so you can naturally see through it. I have only just entered the Master realm, so I cannot discern it." Dun Ruo replied.
"Xu Fu."
"The Crown Prince once said that once this man returns, he must be strictly monitored and not allowed to leave."
"He holds secrets secrets about the Divine Continent."
Ying Bu said in a deep voice.
"So, what should we do?" Dun Ruo asked, looking at Ying Bu.
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