Enlightenment: Attaining the Dao at Age 8

Chapter 314: Chapter 170: The Great War Begins, and Sweet-Talking Lu Shang

…

Year 13256 of the Great Zhou Calendar.

Emperor Wu of Zhou, Li Wuji, held an abdication ceremony in the Great Zhou Capital, and Crown Prince Li Chang’an ascended the throne, becoming the new Emperor of the Great Zhou.

This year, Li Chang’an was twenty years old.

The day after ascending the throne, Li Chang’an announced a military expansion. The entire nation of Great Zhou was immediately plunged into an atmosphere of impending crisis.

He was not like the “fake emperor,” Emperor Wu of Zhou. Throughout the entire Royal Family, aside from Li Lin, who was barely qualified, no one dared to utter a single word of nonsense in his presence.

Li Chang’an’s ascension to the throne was, one might say, a momentous event on the Jiuzhou Continent.

Yet, this year was simply filled with far too many such events.

Not long after Li Chang’an’s ascension, the Great Yuan in the north declared him a man with no respect for father or sovereign, accusing him of seizing the throne by killing his ancestors and forcing his father to abdicate.

After this announcement, the Great Yuan immediately began to mobilize its troops, clearly preparing to declare war on Great Zhou.

Meanwhile, the Qiangman to the west also began to stir.

These barbarians were not so particular.

They wouldn’t follow the Great Yuan’s example of grandly reading out a long-winded document before a fight just to declare their own righteousness.

They said nothing at all, simply beginning to frequently dispatch cavalry to harass Great Zhou’s borders. Tens of thousands of Qiangman iron cavalry could descend upon the cities at any moment.

These two countries were the closest to Great Zhou, and thus their reactions were the swiftest. But their declarations of war and their actions were not an end; they were merely the beginning.

——In the short span of a month, all eleven of the other Twelve Countries, excluding Great Zhou itself, publicly declared their intent to wage war on Great Zhou.

The common people of the Jiuzhou Continent were stunned to witness a miracle unprecedented in the history of Jiuzhou!

At first, when the common people saw the various nations preparing for war with Great Zhou and openly enumerating Li Chang’an’s supposed crimes, they felt a strong animosity toward him.

But as more and more countries declared war, many of the common people finally sensed that something was wrong.

If the Qiangman and the Great Yuan declared war and mobilized their armies, everyone could understand.

After all, the Qiangman, the Great Yuan, and Great Zhou were Fated Rivals. It was no surprise that they would use this as a grand excuse to dispatch their troops.

But many of the other countries were a world away from Great Zhou, with no conflicts or friction to speak of in their daily affairs. They had the kind of relationship where they were completely unrelated.

Even so, these countries weren’t just paying lip service to declaring war on Great Zhou.

They had also tacitly dispatched their own troops…

Eleven countries joining forces against a single nation at the same time—an event like this had probably never occurred in the entire history of the Jiuzhou Continent!

Furthermore, many of these countries had been ’Fated Rivals’ in the past, yet now they were able to join forces over a matter that had absolutely nothing to do with them…

It would be truly strange if there wasn’t something fishy going on!

During this time, the words Li Chang’an had spoken to the crowd of Great Zhou Martial Artists at the gates of the Great Zhou Imperial Palace had already been spread across the entire Jiuzhou Continent by White Jade City and the secret agents Lu Shang had placed in the various nations.

Now, seeing the other countries truly joining forces with such tacit understanding, the people and citizens of many nations were on the verge of collapse.

Because all the signs now indicated that what the Crown Prince of Great Zhou, Li Chang’an, had said was very likely true: the Twelve Countries ruled the Jiuzhou Continent, feigning hostility and fighting amongst themselves on the surface, but in reality, the same group was behind all twelve of them!

On the surface, they wore a hypocritical mask of compassion for the people, but in reality, they were ceaselessly feeding on the flesh and blood of the populace, toying with everyone as if they were nothing more than pigs and dogs.

Naturally, the various countries were unwilling to admit to such news.

They applied pressure through various means, attempting to suppress the topic.

But the hearts of the people were already in turmoil. How could it be so easy to suppress them now?

After all, the Martial Artists and common people of this world were notoriously volatile. A riot, once started, was not so easily quelled.

Clearly, in this major event that was sweeping across the entire Jiuzhou Continent, the White Jade Pavilion and the Immortal Rebel Association founded by Lu Shang played a huge role in fanning the flames of public opinion, buying some time for Li Chang’an.

Although the various countries had all sent a symbolic number of soldiers, the journey was too long, and the God Rebel Association was constantly trying to intercept them along the way.

For the time being, they posed no threat to Great Zhou.

Right now, the only ones Li Chang’an truly needed to be on high alert for were the two nations of Great Yuan and Qiangman.

Because only these two countries were making a truly lethal move; the others were just waving flags and cheering to show their loyalty!

After all, all the other countries had declared war on Great Zhou.

If they didn’t declare war, wouldn’t that be tantamount to betrayal?

…

In year 13257 of the Great Zhou Calendar, Li Chang’an mobilized 300,000 troops using the full power of Great Zhou. He also began to promote a revised version of the Martial Scripture within the army, as well as improve military discipline and training methods.

Elder Hun and Lu Shang were not idle either.

In the past, Lu Shang had stolen Destiny from all over the continent.

At that time, Lu Shang had carried this Destiny with him.

Now, Lu Shang had given all of this Destiny to the Great Zhou army that Li Chang’an was building. With the support of this Destiny, Li Chang’an could clearly feel that the army had become much more responsive, moving as an extension of his own will.

The Great Yuan in the north was the main force in this war.

They had already dispatched troops to bear down on Great Zhou.

The Qiangman in the west were likely responsible for a supporting role, constantly harassing the northwest to prevent Great Zhou from concentrating its forces to deal with the war in the north.