The Hezhen People's Fervor and Ambition

At the foot of Changbai Mountain, the snow-covered plains stretch as far as the eye can see, blending seamlessly with the sky.

Since the beginning of winter, this frigid land has become more bustling than ever before.

From beyond the Liaodong border wall, from the banks of the Songhua River, from the Ussuri River, and from the frozen plains further north, groups of Hezhen tribes, young and old, gathered together.

A fur hat, a sheepskin robe, animal tooth and bone ornaments, a scimitar and a longbow.

The men rode inferior horses and led hunting dogs, while the women carried young children on their backs and herded thin sheep, trudging through knee-deep snow.

Tents stretched from the foot of the mountain to the horizon, one after another, with campfires burning day and night, casting a dark red glow over half the sky.

Hundreds of thousands of Hezhen, young and old, women and children, all gathered at the foot of the White Mountain.

Everyone's face was filled with excitement and fervor, speaking in various accents, yet they were all talking about the same thing.

They marched south, attacked Liaodong, and seized the rich and warm Central Plains.

The source of all this was a middle-aged leader.

He stood on a Viewing Platform made of whole logs at the highest point of the camp, wearing a cloak sewn from black bear skin, a wolf skin crown on his head, thick braids hanging down to his shoulders, and a black iron scimitar slung across his waist.

His face was resolute, with high cheekbones, and his eagle eyes were so sharp they seemed to be able to cut through people's hearts. When he swept over the hundreds of thousands of his followers below, an almost burning ambition surged in his eyes.

His Tie Lehun, and he came from the Hezhen Wole clan of Changbai Mountain.

Five years ago, he was just an insignificant son of a clan chief among the various tribes of Hezhen.

In just five years, he swiftly and decisively pacified more than a dozen tribes, large and small, between the White Mountains and the Black Waters, transforming the various Hezhen tribes, which had previously fought independently and engaged in mutual warfare, into a unified force.

His methods were ruthless and meticulous.

He never indiscriminately killed surrendered tribes, but he would publicly dissect the chest of the most unruly tribal chief to show everyone the consequences of resistance.

He was also very good at winning people over, incorporating the surrendered warriors into his ranks, and giving them cattle, sheep, scimitars, and women, making them grateful and sworn to be loyal to him to the death.

He never got angry at those who outwardly complied but inwardly plotted against him; he Jingjing kept them in mind and waited until they were at their most triumphant before uprooting them completely overnight, leaving no one alive.

Some people secretly called him "White Mountain Wolf," saying he was the most cunning and vicious wolf lurking between the White Mountains and Black Waters.

Tie Lehun didn't care about this title; in fact, he was quite proud of it.

What's wrong with wolves? Wolves are ruthless, cunning, and they can survive in this harsh, cold land, eventually devouring all their prey.

At this moment, his prey is that vast and fertile land to the south.

On the Viewing Platform, several tribal leaders surrounded Tie Lehun.

One of the older leaders couldn't help but speak, his voice filled with undisguised worry:

"Great Khan, we have lived here between these White Mountains and Black Waters for generations. Though the weather is harsh, we are content. Now we are marching south in full force to seize the cities of Liaodong from the Liang Kingdom. What if..."

"What if there really are Divine Ability Immortals with boundless Law Power who intervene Central Plains our lives?"

Upon hearing this, the surrounding leaders all showed some hesitation.

Recently, rumors have been circulating in the border towns of Liaodong that an Azure Profound Immortal Venerable has descended to earth. These rumors are incredibly fantastical, describing him as riding dragons and cranes, turning stones into gold, and destroying cities with a single sword.

Tie Lehun scoffed, his eyes filled with disdain. "Immortals? You actually believe in such nonsense?"

He surveyed the crowd, his voice suddenly rising. "That was nothing but a colossal lie told by the Emperor of the Liang Kingdom to deceive the ignorant masses and consolidate her crumbling throne!"

He grew more and more impassioned as he spoke, then suddenly raised his hand and pointed south. "I've already sent people to investigate thoroughly! The Liang Kingdom is now ruled by a woman, hahaha... This is a golden opportunity!"

"We, the people, suffer from hunger and thirst in this harsh land, relying on hunting and ginseng gathering for generations. We are often hungry and poorly clothed! Why do the Han people occupy those fertile plains and prosperous cities, living a carefree and happy life?"

"Today, I will lead you down the mountain, seize their cities, occupy their land, plunder their grain, and enjoy their bounty!"

"The sons raised in these White Mountains and Black Waters are born to be wolves, destined to devour the fattest piece of meat in the Central Plains!"

"We will establish a nation that belongs to us, the Hezhen True Person, there!"

These words ignited the passion of the leaders and warriors above and below the Viewing Platform. They roared in unison, their shouts rising like waves, one higher than the next, echoing through the valley. The shouts of hundreds of thousands of people shook the snow, causing it to tumble down.

Tie Lehun atop the highest point of the Viewing Platform, facing the swirling snow and gazing at the endless mass of hundreds of thousands of his followers, and at the vast territory that was about to belong to him. He felt a surge of pride and satisfaction.

He believed that he was a great ruler born in the land of White Mountains and Black Waters, a hero destined by heaven to conquer the Central Plains and rule the world.

He drew his black iron scimitar from his waist, the blade pointing directly at the cities of Liaodong to the south, and roared, "The entire army—"

Before he could finish speaking...

Suddenly, a dragon's roar that shook the Nine Heavens resounded from the sky.

Roar...

The voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to carry some ancient majesty, surpassing all things, instantly overwhelming the shouts of hundreds of thousands of people and penetrating deep into the marrow of everyone present.

The mountains trembled, and the accumulated snow collapsed from the mountain peaks, sweeping down in a torrent.

The earth trembled slightly as if an earthquake had struck; countless warhorses reared up in alarm, and hunting dogs tucked their tails between their legs and howled as they lay prostrate on the ground.

Even the Hezhen warriors who had been roaring wildly just moments before were now pale-faced, their legs weak, and they involuntarily looked up at the sky.

The wind stopped, the snow stopped, and a deathly silence fell over the world.

Amidst the swirling snow, a colossal, snow-white Jiaolong slowly emerged from the clouds atop Changbai Mountain.

The scales gleamed with a cold, silvery light in the dim light, and a pair of vertical pupils, like two bottomless pools of ice, looked down coldly at the hundreds of thousands of troops below, as if looking down at a group of ants.

It neither roared nor moved, but simply hung Jingjing in the clouds, its dragon head slightly lowered, as if scrutinizing the noisy ant nest beneath its feet, which thought it could shake the heavens and the earth.

Tie Lehun's sword hovered in mid-air, its forward-pointing motion frozen.

The smugness and high spirits on his face vanished in an instant, replaced by unprecedented shock and horror.

He stared intently at the White Dragon in the sky, his pupils contracting sharply, his whole body trembling slightly uncontrollably.

That dragon's roar, that circling White Dragon, was clearly telling him...

His so-called "golden opportunity"

The so-called "Immortals " were just a lie told by the Empress.

All so-called ambitions,

Before this White Dragon that reigns supreme over all living beings, everything else seems ridiculously insignificant.

Tie Lehun's throat was dry, and he couldn't utter a single word.

For the first time in his life, he felt a crushing force from heaven and earth that was more despairing than death itself.