Great Wall Squad: Building the Great Wall! A Backbone Stretching Countless Miles! Xue Ye's Shock!

The allied forces withdrew, and Chang'an's crisis was completely resolved.

Aside from the Tian Dou Empire redrawing its borders and reinforcing the defenses of several nearby cities.

The continent returned to peace once more.

Yet this surface-level peace was only temporary.

Even fiercer undercurrents were surging. The major powers were all preparing for war against changes that could happen at any moment.

News of the Tian Dou Empire being infiltrated by Spirit Hall spread throughout the continent.

The people of the Chang'an Empire and the Tian Dou Empire were outraged!

Where they had once regarded Chang'an as a band of thugs, they now saw it as the only pure land!

Meanwhile, Tian Dou, which represented the legitimate imperial line, suffered one defeat after another. With the crown prince replaced, brothers turning against each other, and a prince forced into rebellion.

Xue Ye and the Tian Dou Empire faced the doubts of countless people!

Chang'an's temporary royal palace.

Xue Luochuan held another victory banquet, inviting several generals to attend.

Shui Bing'er and the others, dressed in pale-blue maid uniforms, hurried back and forth serving dishes. They cut meat with knives and forks, poured wine, arranged plates, and attended to everyone at the table.

Li Xin had yet to recover from such a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere.

From the day he had been summoned into this world.

He had remained on high alert every day, constantly worrying over whether the Chang'an Empire would be destroyed.

They had won several consecutive battles, each one by the narrowest of margins.

Yet now, faced with a crisis that could have destroyed the nation.

Xue Luochuan had repelled it without spending a single soldier.

"So we just won?" Li Xin still had not loosened his grip on his knife.

"Not only did we win, but for some time to come, as long as the Chang'an Empire does not launch external campaigns, we will not be attacked by other forces either." Xue Luochuan slightly raised his cup and smiled casually.

Ever since its founding several months ago, the empire had been constantly at war.

Only now could the Chang'an Empire truly be considered stable.

"No more fights? How boring!" Baili Xuance pouted in disappointment.

As Xue Luochuan ate, his eyes occasionally drifted toward the map of the continent hanging on the left side of the hall.

"The conflict between Tian Dou and Spirit Hall has been pushed to the limit. War could break out between the two powers at any moment, while the Xing Luo Empire watches hungrily from beyond the border."

"We cannot lower our guard. Next, Chang'an's cities need time to recuperate and restore economic order."

"To defend against wars that could erupt at any time, and to prepare for future expansion, we need to build the Great Wall and connect every city together."

Just like in this battle.

The enemy had launched a feint from the front while secretly sending its main force around toward several other cities.

Had they mishandled it, the Chang'an Empire might have fallen across its entire territory!

Building the Great Wall offered many benefits.

Not only could it defend against enemies from multiple directions, enable rapid communication and reinforcements, and allow him to learn of battlefield developments at the fastest possible speed.

It could also strengthen border management and prevent unlawful Soul Masters or small units from crossing the border.

After all, the Douluo world was a world dominated by Soul Masters.

If they did not guard against Soul Masters, Spirit Hall might infiltrate them at any time.

Of course, the Chang'an Empire currently had plenty of spies from various factions as well.

"Building the Great Wall is a great idea. We have to build it!" Hua Mulan agreed excitedly.

They were the Great Wall Squad. Without a Great Wall, what kind of Great Wall Squad were they?

"I'll leave the Great Wall's construction to all of you. Begin from the cities each of you guards and build connections to the surrounding cities. Work on multiple sections at once, and I believe this massive project will soon be completed."

Xue Luochuan nodded toward the members of the Great Wall Squad.

Hua Mulan confidently patted her chest. "No problem!"

"But building the Great Wall will require a great deal of money." Kai spoke with some difficulty.

The Great Wall was a massive undertaking that would consume enormous manpower and resources!

Of course, because the Douluo world had many Soul Masters.

The construction speed of this project could be greatly accelerated.

But money was an unavoidable issue!

The current national treasury could only maintain existing state expenditures.

There was practically no extra money available to complete such a massive project!

"Should we raise taxes?" Kai asked cautiously.

"There's no need to raise taxes. The poor have nothing worth squeezing out of them anyway." Xue Luochuan shook his head.

"If we don't squeeze the poor, then who do we squeeze?" Hua Mulan stared in astonishment.

"Whoever has money."

Xue Luochuan thought of those wealthy people who had come to give him money from the very beginning.

"As for money, we'll solicit donations from the rich, then promise them some suitable official positions."

This was quite a good method.

Every city in the empire belonged to him now. He could grant official posts to whoever he wanted.

"Isn't that selling official positions?" Hua Mulan froze.

"Ahem, how can imperial affairs be called selling? This is called a donation!" Li Xin coughed lightly in reminder.

Xue Luochuan chewed the beef Shui Bing'er had forked over to him. "Since they have money to donate, their current positions must not be enough for them. To free up official posts, we need to crack down on corrupt officials—crack down on them hard! Those officials must be colluding with businessmen, and they definitely have far more money than the businessmen do!"

A poor county magistrate for three years could amass a hundred thousand taels of silver!

Moreover, most official positions were monopolized by local powers and great clans.

The reason he had chosen the most remote small city as his fief was because it had so many relatives from his "mother's family."

That was why he had been able to seize military authority, control the city's economy, establish a nation, and proclaim himself emperor.

"The people in that southern city are difficult to touch. Move against the other cities instead."

"And if the original City Lords of those cities dare to interfere, purge the forces behind them as well."

At the beginning, to reduce battle casualties, Xue Luochuan had promised those City Lords who surrendered that they could remain City Lords.

So he did not intend to lay hands on the City Lords themselves.

The City Lords would still be City Lords.

But only City Lords in name.

City Lords with no real authority whatsoever.

"Take money from the rich, then pay the poor to build the Great Wall. Won't the economy naturally improve? Your Majesty truly is a genius!"

Li Xin was stunned by the idea!

It could be done like this too?!

"Oh, right. Be sure to keep watch. The border defenses of every city must be strictly guarded—we can't let those rich people escape!"

Xue Luochuan said solemnly.

Some things were easy to say but difficult to do.

Once those wealthy people realized trouble was coming, they would surely try every possible way to flee.

At a time like this, they had to catch every last one of them!

Otherwise, who knew when the Great Wall would ever be completed!

The others nodded gravely.

Very soon, an unprecedented anti-corruption storm swept across the Chang'an Empire!

Rising alongside this anti-corruption storm—

was a majestic, endless wall!

Like a colossal dragon coiled between mountains and earth, it linked several cities end to end!

"The backbone that stretches for countless miles holds up the proud spirit of home and nation!"

Su Lie stood atop the Great Wall, his heart filled with emotion.

The Great Wall—the familiar feeling had returned!

Its grandeur stunned everyone in the Chang'an Empire.

As they looked upon such a magnificent construction, countless people felt a sense of belonging to Chang'an rise within them!

This was a wonder that belonged to Chang'an!

It also enclosed a world that belonged to them!

Such a massive undertaking stunned the neighboring Tian Dou Empire as well!

Heaven Dou Imperial Capital.

Mountains of dossiers lay before Xue Ye, yet he did not spare them a single glance.

His eyes were fixed tightly on the intelligence report in his hand concerning the Chang'an Empire.

"The Great Wall?"

"What is that guy up to now?"