The Human Emperor

“Heh, the reason Dalon Trinling hasn’t made his stance known is that he worries that he will lose his independence if he joins the alliance, or else he feels that the chances of defeating the Great Tang are not good. As for Ishbara Khagan…”

Gao Shang paused, a strange light in his eyes.

“I fear that Wang Chong has truly broken his courage. The Western Turkic Khaganate’s Celestial Wolf Cavalry were slain in battle, and Agudu Lan was also killed by Wang Chong. Most importantly, the much more formidable Arabia was vanquished at the hands of Wang Chong. Ishbara Khagan is now as frightened as can be by the Great Tang, and this fear prevents him from replying!”

Gao Shang waved his fan as he briefly summarized the attitudes of two of the mighty figures of the continent.

Baizhen Tuoluo asked the question on everyone’s mind. “Lord Strategist, what should we do?”

Although the Sage Emperor was dead, the Great Tang’s strength remained. Youzhou alone could not fight against the Great Tang. It needed to borrow the strength of all the other countries to achieve victory.

“It’s fine!”

Gao Shang waved his fan, his face exuding confidence.

“Dalon Trinling is actually even more anxious than us to deal with the Great Tang. Although Dalon Trinling is difficult to deal with, that actually makes it even easier to get him to join our alliance. As for the Western Turkic Khaganate, this hesitant empire might require a little more work from Your Excellency. In addition, no egg survives an overturned nest intact. In this great cold wave, no empire can stand alone!

“Everyone just needs to wait a little longer.”

Gao Shang smiled.

The generals gathered atop the mountain were relieved to hear this, even An Yaluoshan relaxing. He had always trusted in Gao Shang’s judgment.

As everyone celebrated, behind An Yaluoshan, Tian Chengsi seemed to think of something and frowned in unease.

“What’s wrong? Does Sir Tian have something to say?”

Gao Shang immediately noticed Tian Chengsi’s concern and smiled.

But Tian Chengsi said nothing, instead subconsciously glancing at An Yaluoshan in concern.

An Yaluoshan frowned and said, “Talk!”

His subordinate officers should have known that he hated subordinates who hid things from him.

“Your Excellency, there’s just one thing…” Tian Chengsi lowered his head and sternly said, “The Imperial Court’s fortress in the region of the Cang Province and Ying Province now has an army of several hundred thousand soldiers gathered within, and Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian Wang Zhongsi and Tongluo Great General Abusi are personally presiding over it.

“In addition, they’ve recently recruited several thousand craftsmen into their base, and all of them are working day and night on completing the defenses. The situation will be extremely bad for us if this is allowed to continue!”

The mood instantly turned serious, and all the generals frowned. Even Gao Shang grew very quiet.

The fortress!

Wang Chong called the base he had established in the northeast a forward base, but those in Youzhou were accustomed to simply calling it the ‘fortress’.

This was because the defenses there were so heavy that ‘forward base’ was no longer a proper descriptor. It was as well-armed as a fortress.

Tian Qianzhen also spoke up at this time, his voice thick with unease. “Not only that, the Imperial Court’s power is getting stronger by the day. If they want, they could attack Youzhou at any time.”

All of them knew of that fortress to the south, and it made all of them unable to properly sleep or rest!

Before this, all of the Youzhou generals had once discussed how the terrain of Youzhou was unique and its army entirely made of cavalry, allowing for easy offense and defense.

The flexibility of cavalry would allow Youzhou’s soldiers to sweep through the Central Plains whenever they pleased. They could intimidate the capital and the rest of the realm, throwing the people into panic.

The Great Tang was currently too united. Only when the people were panicked did Youzhou have a chance.

But then, Wang Chong had suddenly issued a declaration of war and set up a forward base, a fortress that served as a nail that was thrust into the region connecting Youzhou to the Central Plains. In one fell swoop, he had ruined all the plans they had initially made!

The Youzhou army needed to pass through the Cang Province or Ying Province to attack the Great Tang, and they also had to watch out for attacks from the Great Tang. The fortress instantly forced them into a difficult situation.

With one stroke, Wang Chong had forced the Youzhou group into an extremely passive position.

“Bastard!”

The thought of that young King in the capital made An Yaluoshan clench his fists in fury, his joints cracking.

No matter the time, that man in the capital would always be his greatest foe.

He and Gao Shang had brainstormed many ways to infiltrate or disrupt the operations in the fortress, but all of them had been thwarted.

That man in the capital was undoubtedly even smarter than Gao Shang!

Even though An Yaluoshan was extremely confident in Gao Shang’s ability, he was not sure if Gao Shang could get much of an upper hand against the renowned ‘War Saint’.

Moreover, the forward base had Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian Wang Zhongsi presiding over it. He excelled in both attack and defense, causing even someone like An Yaluoshan to be wary.

The mood turned extremely oppressive.

Even now, the group had not been able to think of a way to deal with Wang Chong’s ‘fortress’.

“And there’s one other matter…”

Tian Chengsi hesitated before continuing.

“The Great Tang earlier began to recruit soldiers, and one million men have already been recruited. In addition, the quality of the recruits is far higher than expected. The Divine Martial Army, the Divine Prison Army, the Xuanwu Army, the Mo Saber Unit… all of these elite armies have expanded. Moreover, enthusiasm remains high, and the experts amongst the people are itching to join.

“Besides that, all of the smithing clans of the Great Tang are operating at full capacity, producing new weapons, armor, and even ballistae day and night. The Great Tang now has more than twice our number of soldiers. Your subordinate worries that this gap will only widen!”

Tian Chengsi finally admitted his true worry. While Youzhou had been engaging in its own recruitment drive, the actions of the Great Tang could not be disregarded.

The Great Tang had also experienced a shift in attitude.

The Great Tang, particularly under the Sage Emperor, had always followed the principle of quality over quantity. Thus, the Great Tang never had an army greater than six hundred thousand, and this included the Imperial Army.

This sort of military policy reduced the burden on the state and the people, but it maximized the pressure on the various protectorates.

Thus, later on, the Great Tang’s army was always more than sufficient for defense but dearly lacking on offense.

If the Sage Emperor had still reigned, the Youzhou army would have been enough to threaten the Central Plains.

But now that the new Emperor had taken the throne, Wang Chong, as a major contributor to the enthronement, had become supreme, answering to only a single person. The entire army was now under his command.

And with his ascension, he did away with the Sage Emperor’s military policy.

Under his command, the Great Tang recklessly expanded its army, relying on the immense wealth that came from vanquishing Arabia and Wang Chong’s invincible reputation to easily expand the army past one million.

Such a vast army, each soldier armed to the teeth, was unprecedented in the history of the Great Tang!

Dark clouds bearing down on a city, threatening to overwhelm it!

The pressure exerted by Wang Chong alone on the Youzhou group exceeded that of an entire empire.

Though Wang Chong’s army had yet to arrive, Youzhou was rife with tension. This was why the Youzhou generals were so anxious to ally with other countries and increase their side’s strength.

No one dared to underestimate the War Saint!

The faces of the generals scowled.

Even if they combined the strength of all the other countries, they were still not guaranteed to be capable of dealing with a million-man army. If it continued to grow, that would be far too frightening, and it would be beyond the capabilities of Youzhou to deal with.

In a flash, their hearts sank.

“Your Excellency, things will continue to get worse for us if this continues.”

Zhao Kan and Baizhen Tuoluo began to voice their worries.

An Yaluoshan said nothing, his brow slightly creasing.

That man in the capital would always be Youzhou’s greatest foe!

“Hmph, a bunch of incompetents! This puny Wang Chong has only erected a fortress, and your courage is already failing?” An aloof and cold voice came from An Yaluoshan’s bosom, its owner seeming to look down on all living beings as if they were ants.

Everyone else was taken aback, but An Yaluoshan was ecstatic.

“Genesis Supreme?!”

Swish!

A puff of black smoke shot out from An Yaluoshan’s bosom.

Remembering something, An Yaluoshan thrust a hand into his bosom and removed a black bone flue about the size of a fist.

This was a communication tool that Genesis Supreme had left for him, but only Genesis Supreme could use it. An Yaluoshan could not use it to get in touch with Genesis Supreme.

Buzz!

Black smoke gushed out of the flute, lingering in the air and swiftly congealing into an image of Genesis Supreme.

But this Genesis Supreme seemed somewhat different from what An Yaluoshan remembered. A bizarre blue light was flashing on his abdomen.

However, he could sense that familiar energy on this phantom, and his mind rejoiced while his brow relaxed.