In the history of the Empire, it was not uncommon for military leaders to hold their armies as leverage against the imperial court. Yet, none of them ever had a good ending. Even if the capital temporarily compromised, it would always find ways to pursue accountability afterward to prevent future imitations. Now, Song Zining, in an attempt to protect Qian Ye, used a potential mutiny as a threat, which was a grave transgression.
Qian Ye did not consider the profits from trading with the Empire to be of much importance. Even if they could rival the wealth of a nation, these material gains did not weigh as heavily in his heart as Zi Ning and Jun Du did.
If he had known the consequences beforehand, he would have swallowed his pride and continued the trade with the Empire. After all, before the discovery of the New World, there was no such thing as the sacred tree sap; he could simply pretend it never existed.
Eunuch Liu noticed Qian Ye’s distress and unexpectedly offered some words of comfort. He said that what Zi Ning did might not be entirely bad. The situation in the New World was dire, and everyone could see that without sufficient reinforcements, even someone as talented and wise as Song Zining could not avoid ultimate defeat.
On the frontlines, besides Song Zining and Zhao Jun Du, there were also several dukes and other powerful figures, like Wei Po Tian, who were just a step away from reaching the divine general level.
These people were no fools. They knew that a lack of supplies would lead to certain death. In such circumstances, if someone caused a critical shortage of sacred tree sap due to trivial reasons, and the capital could not provide a satisfactory explanation, a mutiny was almost inevitable.
So, the danger of a mutiny on the frontline, as mentioned by Song Zining, was likely true. Whether he secretly contributed to this was another matter.
For now, at least, Song Zining’s achievements were impressive enough that Emperor Hao, no matter how incompetent, would not dare to take action against him. Moreover, Emperor Hao was a man of great talent and vision.
After hearing Eunuch Liu’s words, Qian Ye felt a little more at ease. The amount of sacred tree sap traded with the Empire was a delicate matter—too much or too little could be problematic.
Qian Ye humbly sought advice, and Eunuch Liu generously provided guidance. The final agreed-upon quantity was roughly two-thirds of the Empire’s maximum medicinal production capacity, providing room for negotiation while not delaying the war effort.
Only the most elite troops could enter the Black Sun Valley. Many of the Empire’s units had to undergo additional training in Qin Continent for a week before they could barely meet the standards. Producing more medicine than needed would be wasteful, and Qian Ye had to keep some reserves for any unforeseen complications.
In the face of absolute profit, reason and principle were cast aside, and only the voice of strength could be heard.
With the deal struck, Eunuch Liu had completed a significant task. He did not leave immediately but instead spent a day wandering through Bi Bo City, observing the trade activities of various races without commenting. Before leaving, he only informed Qian Ye, then quietly departed.
Eunuch Liu did not hide his itinerary from Qian Ye, but he showed little interest in the summit of the mountains, even neglecting to visit the partially built training camp. Instead, he spent his time in the market, watching different races haggling. He even bought a considerable amount of items, so much that Qian Ye wondered if his spatial equipment could even fit them all.
Naturally, Eunuch Liu’s actions had a purpose, but since he did not reveal it, Qian Ye could only guess.
After Eunuch Liu left, Qian Ye arranged for a frigate to transport several crates of sacred tree sap to the Empire, with the Yin and Kong families’ men escorting the shipment.
Choosing the right escort was crucial, so Qian Ye, half-encouraging and half-coercing, sent Miss Yin Qiqi aboard the frigate. This, at least, brought some peace to his ears.
Knowing that Song Zining was winning victories in the central region and that the supply of sacred tree sap was now steady, the Empire’s situation was not as dire. Qian Ye felt relieved and sent William to blaze new trails in the Fireland. He then entered the New World himself, knowing that its exploration was no longer just his own concern but also that of Zi Ning and Jun Du, and even the fate of the Empire and humanity.
The existence of the Black Sun Valley gave Qian Ye a strange feeling of both familiarity and fear.
Unconsciously, the battle between the Empire and the Evernight in the Black Sun Valley had already lasted for over a month.
This time, Song Zining changed his strategy, advancing step by step, setting up multiple fortresses. Within a short period, several fierce fortress battles had been fought. At the same time, he dispatched multiple units to roam the Black Sun Valley, targeting the Evernight’s supply lines when opportunities arose.
This approach meant fewer classic, decisive mobile and annihilation battles, making the war a grim and bloody affair. Casualties rose sharply, and the daily casualty lists sent back to the Empire were long and heavy, with many soldiers missing and unaccounted for.
This strategy drew much criticism.
The casualties over the past month nearly matched the total of the entire previous New World campaign, and the mystical aura surrounding Song Zining seemed to have vanished. Critics emerged, mocking his fortress defense strategy, claiming even an old-timer could manage it.
Only a few discerning individuals saw that, in each fortress battle, the dark races had the upper hand, but not decisively. The advantage tempted them to continue attacking the fortresses, yet they found the defenses too tough to crack. Even when a fortress was taken, it was usually after the Empire strategically abandoned it, rarely by force.
If this happened once or twice, it might be considered a fluke, but consistently, it showcased Song Zining’s unparalleled military strategy and divination skills. This was a bleeding tactic, with each fortress acting as a knife, continuously draining the dark races’ elite and core forces.
However, the Empire’s casualties were alarming, and each morning, the most solemn moment in the military meetings was reading out the previous day’s casualty numbers. Both seasoned veterans and young newcomers were weighed down by the heavy toll.
In just one month, the Empire had lost over 100,000 soldiers, all elite, not cannon fodder. This loss was equivalent to the core of two or three legions, a staggering number that tugged at everyone’s heartstrings.
Although the dark races’ losses were nearly three times that of the Empire, many still questioned Song Zining’s strategy. The war was brutal and painful, with countless lives lost each day, trading one life for another.
The Evernight Parliament was also suffering, but their forces continued to pour into the New World, forcing the Empire to endure.
Each passing day, the doubts about Song Zining grew. Fortunately, everyone knew they could not replace him, so they only criticized. Song Zining ignored the voices from the rear, focusing solely on the attrition war with the dark races.
“One day, the dark races will crumble first, for they are three races, and we are only human,” Song Zining repeated daily, donning his cold metal mask and heading to the battlefield.
Amid the dark, oppressive, and blood-soaked battlefield, there were occasional bright spots. Song Zining sent multiple units to harass the enemy’s rear, with some failing, but a few achieving remarkable results.
Wei Po Tian was the most notable among them.
In his most famous battle, Wei Po Tian accidentally led his troops into a desperate situation, but during their siege on a lone peak, the Wei family soldiers displayed incredible resilience, battling an enemy nearly ten times their number for an entire day and night. Wei Po Tian, alone, withstood the assault of five marquises.
Though he was almost defenseless, he held his ground, appearing to be on the brink of defeat.
Yet, the sword peak soaring into the sky remained unyielding, giving the Wei soldiers boundless courage. They fought fiercely, repelling the dark races’ attacks time and again.
In the end, the five marquises attacking Wei Po Tian were the first to tire. No matter how they attacked, the impact on Wei Po Tian was diminished, becoming ineffectual.
Wei Po Tian’s zanpakuto, a weapon feared by the dark races, inflicted wounds that took weeks to heal. In the New World, such injuries were even more dangerous, potentially lethal if not treated properly.
At critical moments, Wei Po Tian was always ready to take enemies with him, but the immortals, despite their advantage, were unwilling to die with a madman.
As the battle neared its end, multiple human units appeared, with Song Zining personally leading the charge, setting up an outer perimeter and defeating the besieging Evernight forces, killing tens of thousands.
After this battle, Wei Po Tian gained fame, and the sword peak’s shadow was recognized as the realm achievable by the Wei family’s Thousand Mountains at the divine general level: Peak Solitude.
Wei Po Tian, though not yet a divine general, had already grasped the higher realm, earning admiration and even being hailed as the third genius of the Empire, second only to Zhao and Song.
Young, talented, and from a prominent family, many sought to arrange marriages with him.
Some even approached him directly, but he was bewildered, “A marriage proposal? What marriage? I’ve already taken Rain Cherry’s favor, how can I look for others?”
This statement caused a stir, and Zhao Rain Cherry also became famous.
Duke Yan should have been furious, but he merely said, “Young people, they can be impulsive.”
This implied that the deed was done, and so it was.
The alliance between the Zhao clan and the Wei Marquis of the Far East was thus established. The Zhao clan gained a strong ally in the Far East, and the Wei family benefited greatly from the Zhao clan’s support, making their expansion smoother. The disappointment of many clans was a separate matter.
Apart from Wei Po Tian, the Empire saw the rise of many young generals, attracting the attention of major families, who would seek to marry them once the war ended.
Of course, during the war, no one would act on it, partly to maintain morale and partly to see who would survive.
As the bodies piled up, the balance of victory seemed to tilt slowly toward the Empire, but in Song Zining’s eyes, it was still far from enough.
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