Chapter 257: Western Front Advance

Chapter 257: Chapter 257: Western Front Advance

Qian Renxue casually tossed aside the diplomatic letter.

The bright yellow brocade fabric arced through the air, landing on the floor with a faint thud.

Zhou Zhengyuan’s pupils constricted ever so slightly. His hands clenched tightly into fists, his knuckles turning white.

Yet, he dared not give vent to his anger.

This was Spirit City—the domain of the Spirit Hall. The woman standing before him was the Supreme Pontiff of the Spirit Hall, the very architect behind the destruction of the Heaven Dou Empire.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the fury raging within his heart, and strove to keep his voice as steady as possible: "Your Holiness, our Star Luo Empire has come bearing sincere intentions. I implore Your Holiness to reconsider."

Qian Renxue gazed at him, a flicker of amusement glinting in her eyes.

"Sincerity?"

She rose from her seat, descended the steps, and walked over to stand directly before Zhou Zhengyuan.

The click-clack of her high heels against the polished, mirror-like floor rang out crisply—each step seeming to land directly upon the envoy’s heart.

She halted in front of Zhou Zhengyuan, looking down at him from her commanding height.

"Go back and tell your Star Luo Emperor this:"

Her voice was not loud, yet it carried an indisputable, absolute authority: "It is precisely the intention of my Spirit Hall to annihilate your Star Luo Empire. Only by destroying you can I truly unify the entire continent."

Zhou Zhengyuan’s face instantly turned ashen white.

Qian Renxue turned around, walked back to her throne, and took her seat.

Her voice continued to reverberate throughout the grand hall: "Your time is running out. Heaven Dou has already fallen; Star Luo’s turn is not far behind."

"In the days remaining to you, eat, drink, and indulge in your pleasures to your heart’s content—and wait for the day your nation meets its ruin."

Zhou Zhengyuan’s body trembled slightly.

He parted his lips, intending to speak, but found that no words would come.

A long silence ensued.

He bowed deeply in salutation, his voice hoarse: "This humble envoy... takes his leave."

He turned and walked out of the grand hall.

His footsteps were heavy; his retreating figure appeared desolate and forlorn.

...

After departing from Spirit City, the diplomatic delegation traveled day and night, racing back toward Star Luo City. Upon hearing Zhou Zhengyuan’s report, Dai Yutian’s face turned ashen.

Seated upon the Dragon Throne, he remained silent for a long time.

Inside the grand hall, the civil and military officials stood in mute silence; the atmosphere was so oppressive it felt suffocating.

"What a piece of work, that Qian Renxue..."

Dai Yutian finally spoke, his voice low and gravelly, as if being squeezed from the very depths of his chest: "Since she seeks war, then war it shall be."

He rose to his feet, his gaze sweeping across the assembled crowd: "Issue the decree: a nationwide general mobilization. Every able-bodied male of age shall be conscripted into the army. All grain reserves and military armaments stockpiled in every city are to be immediately dispatched to the front lines."

"I shall see for myself whether the Spirit Hall truly has the appetite to devour my Star Luo Empire whole!"

...

Spirit City, the Papal Palace.

Qian Renxue stood before a massive map, her fingers tracing the borders of the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire.

Heaven Dou had fallen; next on the list was Star Luo.

"Issue the orders!"

She turned around to face the assembly of Elders standing below her: "Elders Qianjun, Jiangmo, Yueguan, and Guimei—you four shall lead the main army southward toward the Ancient Thunder Kingdom."

"Yes, Your Holiness!" the four replied in unison.

Qian Renxue’s gaze then settled upon another individual, a faint smile playing upon her lips.

"Jiang Bai."

Jiang Bai stood waiting to the side.

Qian Renxue continued: "In the Fasinuo Province, an army of two hundred thousand has already been assembled. Recruited from the various influential clans that have pledged their allegiance to us, this force includes a great number of young prodigies. Yu Tianxin, Yu Tianheng, Huyan Li, Huo Wushuang, Feng Xiaotian, and many others are among their ranks."

"This army, I entrust to your command. March southward from the Fasinuo Province and launch attacks against the Pelagi Kingdom, the Kilikris Kingdom, the Yunluo Duchy, and the surrounding territories."

Jiang Bai raised an eyebrow: "So, the plan is to systematically dismantle all those minor kingdoms situated to the south of the Star Luo Empire?"

Qian Renxue nodded: "The only reason the Star Luo Empire has been able to hold its own against the Heaven Dou Empire for so many years is the manpower and supplies provided by these vassal states. Strip them away, and Star Luo becomes nothing more than a tiger with its claws and fangs torn out."

Jiang Bai smiled: "Very well."

He turned around, preparing to take his leave.

"Wait," Qian Renxue called out, stopping him.

Jiang Bai turned around.

Qian Renxue gazed at him, a flicker of reluctance and tenderness passing through her eyes. "Stay safe."

Jiang Bai smiled—a smile both gentle and confident.

"Don’t worry. With my level of cultivation, what could possibly go wrong?"

...

A few days later, in Fasinuo Province.

An army of two hundred thousand marched southward, sweeping through the land with unstoppable force.

The Pelagi Kingdom was a long, narrow realm, bordered by Fasinuo to the north and Kilikris to the south.

The kingdom possessed no Title Douluo; its strongest cultivator was merely an eighty-first-rank Soul Douluo.

Jiang Bai did not even need to lift a finger.

For the first time, those young prodigies experienced the true nature of a battlefield. It was not the sparring of an academy, nor the duels of an arena; it was a life-and-death struggle for survival.

Some were wounded; some fell. Yet, no one retreated.

For they knew this was their opportunity to prove themselves.

Shui Bing’er, Ye Lingling, Feng Xiaotian, Huo Wushuang, Yu Tianxin, and the others fought with exceptional valor.

With a single freezing strike, Shui Bing’er could encase a whole section of the enemy ranks in ice, allowing the Spirit Hall army to advance unimpeded.

Ye Lingling’s Nine-Heart Begonia shone even more brilliantly upon the battlefield.

Whenever battle commenced, she would unleash her True Spirit Avatar.

A colossal Nine-Heart Begonia blossomed in the sky, its petals unfolding in layers, radiating a soft, jade-green glow.

That light enveloped the Spirit Hall formations; the wounds of injured soldiers healed rapidly, while the spirits of weary warriors were instantly revitalized.

With her presence, the Spirit Hall army suffered virtually no casualties.

The Pelagi Kingdom fell seven days later.

The Kilikris Kingdom fell five days later.

The Yunluo Duchy surrendered three days later.

...

The news reached Star Luo City.

Dai Yutian sat upon his dragon throne, clutching the battle reports in his hands, his face ashen with rage.

"Pelagi has fallen... Kilikris has fallen... Hadrian has fallen... Yunluo has surrendered..."

He recited the names, his voice growing ever lower, ever hoarser. "Four kingdoms... gone—all of them—in less than a month!"

He slammed the battle report down onto his desk with a resounding bang—a shockwave so violent it sent the teacups sitting there leaping into the air.

"No matter how powerful the Spirit Hall may be, surely it’s impossible for them to wipe out four entire kingdoms in the span of a mere month!"

His voice boomed like a clap of thunder, echoing through the great hall: "The combined forces of those four kingdoms totaled at least five hundred thousand troops! Even if they were just five hundred thousand pigs, the Spirit Hall couldn’t possibly round them all up in a single month!"

His furious roars reverberated through the hall, shaking the assembled civil and military officials to their very cores.

The ministers bowed their heads in silence, none daring to utter a word. They knew Dai Yutian’s temper all too well; to speak up now would likely only serve to further enrage their already furious Emperor.

A deathly silence fell over the hall, broken only by the sound of Dai Yutian’s heavy, ragged breathing.

After a long pause...

Crown Prince Dai Weisi stepped forward.

As the future heir to the Star Luo Empire, he knew that at this critical juncture, he was the only one who could—or should—speak.

"Father Emperor, the deed is done; we have no choice now but to devise a strategy to counter this threat."

His voice was soft, yet clear and resolute.

"Now that the Spirit Hall has seized control of these kingdoms, they will inevitably mobilize a force of at least three hundred thousand troops in the near future, launching an offensive from the Kingdom of Hadrian—marching along the Hadrian River—straight toward the Star Luo Province."

"We must make our preparations immediately!"

The Star Luo Province—the central heartland of the Star Luo Empire—was also the seat of the Imperial Capital, Star Luo City. If that province were to fall, the Star Luo Empire would be utterly finished.

Dai Yutian furrowed his brow in deep contemplation; just as he was about to speak, a frantic voice rang out from beyond the hall doors.

"Urgent dispatch!"

All eyes turned simultaneously toward the entrance.

A soldier, clad in blood-stained armor, came sprinting into the hall. His face was caked with dust and exhaustion, and his armor was smeared with dried blood—in places, the metal had been gouged open, revealing the raw, mangled flesh beneath.

Gasping for breath, he stumbled his way to the center of the hall and dropped to one knee. "Your Majesty! The Eastern Front has fallen!"

His voice was hoarse, trembling with the verge of tears: "Duke Youming has fallen in battle! Our army of three hundred thousand has been completely annihilated! The Spirit Hall... the Spirit Hall has already advanced from the Kingdom of Gulei into the Kingdom of Xingyao!"

At these words, a deathly silence fell over the hall.

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