The chubby little boy's round face was full of confusion. "Isn't it?"
"Of course not." As he spoke, he patted Tu Rong on the head, then warned him—not too gently, not too harshly—"Remember, underestimating your enemy and getting cocky are cardinal sins!"
The chubby little boy held his head and nodded, looking aggrieved.
But he still said earnestly, "This student will remember."
Shen Tang picked up on something else. "The Northern Desert isn't what it used to be?"
Chu Yao gave a bitter smile. "That's right. It isn't what it used to be."
True, after the Calamity Star fell from the heavens, the Ten Crows of the Northern Desert and other foreign peoples had nearly become walking bags of experience. The Vassal Lords' states didn't even bother playing with them. On top of that, the literary and martial Word Spirits were all copied and compiled from the various National Seals—fragments of the fallen star—which left the foreign peoples weak and at a low ebb for a time.
But they were only born with a developmental disadvantage. That didn't mean there was anything wrong with their brains. They could still comprehend Heaven and Earth Qi, and they could still condense a Literary Heart and Martial Spirit. For various reasons, they had more Martial Spirits and fewer Literary Hearts, but their individual combat abilities were by no means weak. As for Word Spirits—
Tsk, Word Spirits were something you could learn.
And learn openly, too.
How?
Every so often, they'd send a small force to harass a neighboring state. When its troops came to fight, the foreign people would offer beautiful hostages from their tribes if they couldn't win.
The beauties' looks stood out. Some were taken into the Sovereign's inner court, and others were bestowed upon meritorious officials. That was the