NOVEL NEXT Chapter 307 Formless Ball
"To prepare for the southern expedition, the Heavenly King exhausted the treasury and recruited the brave and battle-hardened warriors from across the land, counting thirty thousand Jianghu practitioners and Qi cultivators, all granted the Domineering Body Technique, issued the Divine Gang Pill, and appointed as Dragon Ascending Middle Lang Generals.
Further, levies were raised in various states and counties, drafting two men out of every three and three out of every five. The edict ordered drafted soldiers to produce a cart per five men, two cows, fifteen dou of rice, and ten bolts of silk, with the penalty of beheading for those unprepared.
At the same time, tens of thousands of households from the Nine Border Provinces were relocated to Genzhou, undertaking extensive farming to supply military needs. All the people's horses were confiscated, with a penalty of waist severing for those who dared to hide them, totaling over one hundred forty thousand horses.
Armies recruited from various states and counties amounted to over half a million armored soldiers, seventeen thousand laborers and boatmen, while forcibly seizing the wives and daughters of the populace, tens of thousands were deployed to bolster military camps. All were forcibly marched to assemble along the Gen River line.
During the journey, those who attempted to desert were punished by military law; those who drowned or were devoured by beasts accounted for one-third, while the state and county commoners were left destitute, selling off children to supply military needs, yet unable to make ends meet, with suicides by hanging along the roadside seen near and far.
Thus, along with the existing troops of Genzhou and Kan State, the grand army numbered a full million. Tens of thousands of boats were prepared to transport twenty-eight million dou of military provisions, crossing at the numerous fords of the Gen River, continuing rapid crossings and aggressive attacks nonstop.
By dawn today, eagle messages reported that the vanguard had broken through Guan Du, the various armies attacked and entered the Officer, shocking the Two States, capturing territories with unstoppable momentum. All the vassal guards of the Immortal Palace could not withstand and had retreated to defend Hulao Pass.
"Ha, the Immortal Palace is done for."
"Alas, the Immortal Palace is done for indeed..."
Yes, the fact that the Immortal Palace is nearly done for has reached the point of common knowledge even among the songstresses and dancers of the Imperial Music Bureau.
Indeed, Tie Dan now drinks at the Ye Capital Imperial Music Bureau, where a beautiful woman in a thin silken skirt, with graceful elegance, pours wine while whispering to him the military news and rumors from Genzhou.
After all, a guest can talk about whatever they wish, can do whatever they please, play music and sing if they want, talk about the world if they choose, or naturally remain silent.
Of course, Tie Dan wasn't here for anything particular, just to find out what's going on in the city. In passing, he wanted to test whether the secret passage leading to the palace, beneath the rebuilt Imperial Music Bureau, was still usable.
However, even a casual inquiry into these outrageous maneuvers by Stone Dragon left him thoroughly dumbfounded.
To think about it, whether that fellow is indeed a bloodthirsty madman or a psychopathic anarchist, the organizational capability is staggeringly strong...
At first, even Tie Dan thought that Stone Dragon was indulging in pleasure and living in drunken stupor by recruiting extensive labor, building palaces, and hoarding the people's wealth. Who would have thought his ambition was in world domination, merely using the guise of greed and lust to seize resources needed to assemble military supplies by plundering Genzhou?
Furthermore, look, it took just a few months after defeating the Immortal Palace to completely drain Genzhou's coffers and gather a million strong army for a southern march. Is this what is called seeking pleasure and lacking ambition?
Now, do you know what the Immortal Palace has done during this time?
Nothing.
No recruiting of soldiers, no purchase of horses, while the court's proceedings are still stuck at the agenda of 'whose fault it is for the lost troops and territories'.
Because no faction has temporarily claimed responsibility for this blame. And since the problem is not acknowledged, there is naturally no ground for further discussion on how to solve it...
Oh yes, wasn't another Empress Dowager recently dead in the Ziwei Constellation? It's unknown how these Immortal Kings and Queens die, but anyway, the rubber stamp must attend the funeral observances, and most operations at the Three Constellations might have been halted, I suppose...
After drinking several cups and wandering around the other rooms' chambers, Tie Dan also overheard extensive debates.
Now with the rebel army's grand southern expedition, Ye Capital is equally chaotic, even the playboy sons of Gate Valve families are restless, gathering under the guise of hosting banquets and parties to secretly discuss and exchange information.
True, the Genzhou Gate Valves are hedging their bets on both sides, not daring to staunchly support the rebel army against the Immortal Palace, but merely maintaining superficial relations, offering some protection fees for enjoyment which is not outlandish.
In the end, when everyone realized that the rebel army had already plundered significant population, wealth, and supplies, completing preparation for continued campaigns, and that through ruthless and ironclad means, war machinery was advancing. This caught even the Hebei Gate Valve guards unprepared, directly swept into the war machine and involved in the southern expedition.
And what's more fatal, compared to the factional infighting, dissension, and indecision from the Immortal Palace, the rebel army's rapid advance even caused these Gate Valve guards to waver.
Was it conceivable that the rebels were this ambitious, or was the Heavenly King indeed an unparalleled dominant lord, and the supreme Your Majesty would soon return to his loyal Three Constellations?
Then should everyone truly double down, gambling for meritorious recognition from dragons?
After all, the Shi Family of Kan Country is a legitimate vassal king's clan, with the bloodline of an Immortal Venerable! This Immortal Emperor's position, might be one they could sit upon!
Obviously, the Hebei Gate Valve Family Heads were briefly stunned by the Heavenly King's astonishing decisiveness and momentum, swaying them, and each pondering how much power to invest in supporting the rebel army on this southern expedition, striving to understand which side to bet on to survive in these chaotic times.
Of course, Tie Dan clearly understands that Stone Dragon, that madman, probably isn't even after that position.