Several days later, the entire empire’s massive military-industrial complex began to operate at full capacity once more. An immense amount of supplies and equipment continuously flowed towards the fortresses outside the Qin Continent. Troops that had undergone either thorough or insufficient adaptation training rushed to the fortresses, where they underwent final preparations before being dispatched into the new world.
Simultaneously, almost all of the empire’s covert operations in the Evernight World were activated. Intelligence reports flowed back to the empire like a river, covering everything from troop movements, the activities of powerful individuals, to fluctuations in prices in certain regions.
These reports, once sorted, summarized, and analyzed by professionals, revealed many clear patterns, and some major plans gradually came to light.
The news of encountering dark races in the new world had already spread among the upper echelons of the empire. Everyone knew that an unprecedented great war was imminent. In the past, even in battles of the scale of the floating continent, the four major dark races had always been dragging each other down, and none would fully commit to fighting the empire.
But the new world was different. The four races had united as never before, even halting their millennium-long holy wars. Even though the werewolves were excluded from the core interests, the coalition of just three races still represented an unprecedentedly powerful force.
Fortunately, the number of troops that could be sent to the new world was limited, and the rotation frequency was much faster than in homeland conflicts. However, the number of powerful individuals would not be so restricted, and the pressure on the empire remained unprecedentedly heavy.
In the fortress, Zhao Jundu, who had been reading intelligence reports for an entire day, finally lifted his head, stretching his stiff neck. “At last, some good news. The dark races have reached their limit in the number of troops they can send to the new world. That means our opponents won’t increase any further.”
Across from him, Song Zining looked up from a mountain of documents. “Is that good news? Then I have some bad news. Even if they’ve reached their limit and left out the werewolves, we’re still facing six times our numbers.”
“Winning with fewer forces is what shows your true ability,” Zhao Jundu said seriously. Song Zining, unsure if he was being sincere or joking, replied, “I don’t have that kind of skill. When it comes to breaking through the enemy, we still need our Peerless General, right?”
There was no response from the corner of the room.
Song Zining turned to look and found that Wei Po Tian, who had been reading the reports with them, was still sitting upright, eyes wide open but empty, breathing evenly, and his head moving rhythmically. This guy had actually fallen asleep!
For Wei Po Tian’s talent of sleeping with his eyes open, Song Zining was speechless, too exasperated to even get angry, and could only shake his head in resignation.
“If we truly face the dark races, how to fight is one thing, but why to fight is another. Jundu, what do you think is in the new world that the dark races are so committed to mobilizing for? The last time they united was when humanity rose, and even during the Dawn War, their alliance didn’t last long.”
Song Zining pondered, voicing the question that had plagued him. “After all, our origin power spectrum is completely opposite to the Evernight faction. If the resources in the new world are useless to us, should we still pay such a heavy price to fight this great war with the dark races?”
Zhao Jundu responded, “You ask me, how would I know? How to fight this battle is your responsibility.”
“How is it my responsibility? You’re the commander here.”
“In name, but for this battle, you are the main general.”
“Zhao Jundu, you’re trying to shirk responsibility. Anyway, I’m not taking this role as the main general.”
Zhao Jundu said leisurely, “It’s not up to you. The imperial decree has already been issued.”
“Decree? When did this happen? I didn’t know about it.”
“After we captured the nest’s core and received the dark race’s information, I applied to the court to have you take the role of the main general, with full authority over the command. The decree will probably arrive soon.”
Song Zining hurriedly stood up. “I am already a member of the Neutral Grounds. Strictly speaking, I am no longer a citizen of the empire, and it’s inappropriate for me to be the main general!”
Zhao Jundu’s smile faded, becoming serious. “Zining, I don’t know what you’re worried about, but this battle will be hard. You know this. After all, in terms of military strategy, I still fall short compared to you. A miscalculation in a battle of this magnitude could lead to disastrous consequences. Can you bear to see the soldiers who fought with us die in vain?”
With Zhao Jundu saying that, Song Zining was left with no choice. He stood there for a while, opening and closing his lips several times, but finally, he didn’t refuse.
At that moment, a servant outside the door announced, “An imperial envoy has arrived!”
Song Zining looked helplessly at Zhao Jundu and got up to prepare to greet the envoy together. But suddenly, Wei Po Tian jumped up, staring blankly, and asked, “An imperial envoy? Is it here to commend our military achievements?”
With the empire’s full support, within a week, Zhao Jundu and Song Zining’s main forces had completed their rearmament and quietly entered the new world, preparing to search for the Demonspawn’s main force for a decisive battle.
Song Zining, as usual, first armed his soldiers to the teeth and then managed to gather a large number of powerful individuals to join the campaign. Fortunately, the new world offered immense benefits, and the empire was generous with its rewards, offering the highest standards. On the other hand, various noble families were eager to keep up in the new world. The situation on the Overland was stable, progress on the Western Continent was lukewarm, but the development on the Qin Continent was going smoothly, with continuous new breakthroughs.
The combination of Song Zining and Zhao Jundu was initially not well-regarded, as both were still young and their paper strength was somewhat lacking. But no one expected that Song Zining would break through and become a divine general just before the battle. With two divine generals, their force could no longer be considered weak.
Now that the dark races had shown their presence, the empire began to continuously dispatch powerful individuals, with four dukes entering the new world. In theory, they all had to follow the orders of Zhao Jundu and Song Zining, something that was unimaginable in the past, as the two were newly appointed divine generals, far behind in seniority.
However, Zhao Jundu had a deep background. Previously, the Zhao family had three dukes, and now, under the name of the Chongen Duke’s residence, there were three divine generals, not counting the High Princess. The entire country also knew that Qian Ye was Zhao Jundu’s brother, a fierce man who, at a young age, aimed to expand territories and proclaim himself king. Therefore, the four dukes all kept a low profile, showing no intention of vying for power with the Zhao and Song duo.
This was the way of the wise. If they won, they naturally wouldn’t miss out on benefits. If they lost, it wouldn’t matter; they could either withdraw or clean up the mess, depending on their mood.
Song Zining naturally understood their intentions and disregarded them, issuing orders daily with the decree, treating the four dukes as ordinary generals.
The dukes, with deep political acumen, complied without protest. Song Zining’s previous achievements were outstanding, and since Lin Xitang’s demise, no one in the empire was recognized as a better tactician. At most, people would say Song Zining was still young and lacked experience.
Thus, after a series of dazzling maneuvers, the advancing imperial army finally encountered the vanguard of the dark races.
At that moment, the demon army, consisting of tens of thousands of soldiers, was attacking a single sacred tree forest and had almost secured victory. The soldiers were dragging the corpses of the six-armed creatures onto trucks, and the powerful ones were either resting or treating injuries. They never expected the imperial army to appear suddenly.
Many demon soldiers were still clearing out the remaining beasts in the forest, completely unaware of what was happening outside. The demon soldiers guarding the forest entrance were mostly wounded, many lying on the ground groaning, waiting for treatment that might never come. When they saw the charging imperial soldiers, they were stunned for a while before realizing that it was indeed the flag of the Great Qin.
When the first wave of cannonballs and crossbow bolts landed, the alarm finally sounded, but it was already too late. The imperial army began to flank the demon forces, attempting a complete encirclement. As the exhausted demon elites barely managed to rise into the air to counterattack, a marquis suddenly fell backward, and then a trajectory of origin power slowly appeared in the sky.
Seeing the distinctly curved blue trajectory, many demon elites felt a familiar yet unidentifiable feeling. Finally, someone exclaimed, “Zhao Jundu!”
This blue trajectory was Zhao Jundu’s signature innate ability, the inevitable hit. Back in the Floating Land battle, this unique blue trajectory had already become famous. However, only the true top-tier elites could enter the new world, and they rarely participated in such battles. Thus, many demon elites had only heard of this blue trajectory but had never seen it.
Since becoming a divine general, Zhao Jundu’s status in the hearts of the dark races had not diminished despite his weakened foundation. For them, whether Zhao Jundu could become a Heavenly King was a distant concern. Currently, they couldn’t beat him, so why worry about the future?
With Zhao Jundu’s increased power as a divine general, his inevitable hit became an undisputed divine skill. Even a duke wouldn’t want to casually receive a blow from Zhao Jundu. But because of the inevitable hit, avoiding a strike was impossible, and even in a group attack, Zhao Jundu could choose his target at will.
Thus, Zhao Jundu remained one of the most formidable enemies in the hearts of the dark races.
Previously, when the elites surrounded the six-armed creatures, although no one died, they were all injured. They knew that injuries in the new world were difficult to control, and those with severe wounds were cautious. The marquis, having only superficial injuries, acted carelessly and was struck down by Zhao Jundu.
Two viscounts rushed to support him and, seeing a large hole in the marquis’s chest, knew it was too late. The hole was where the demonic core was located, equivalent to the vital blood nucleus of the vampires. The demonic core destroyed, even a marquis would perish instantly.
Before the elites could decide whether to fight or retreat, the dead six-armed creatures suddenly rose. In shock, they saw the surrounding scenery change, and countless six-armed creatures emerged from the ground.
Another elite’s soul nearly shattered, and he exclaimed, “Song Zining!”
In a flash, the chaotic demon army disintegrated, turning and fleeing.
Song Zining, dumbfounded, forgot to maintain his domain and said, “Am I that terrifying?”
Zhao Jundu kicked him hard and shouted, “Hurry up and chase!”
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