Chapter 23: The Great Ming Empire!!!
Ming City
Great Ming Square.
"Report!"
"The Dragon Guard was supposed to muster two hundred thousand. One hundred and fifty thousand have arrived!"
Clatter, clatter, clatter~!!!
Their steps were orderly, their eyes sharp, and an awe-inspiring aura of slaughter seemed to radiate from them. On top of that, they wore golden dragon armor.
Every detail showed the might of the Great Ming Kingdom's strongest army: the Dragon Guard.
"Your Majesty, according to your wishes, the million people in the Galloping Wolf Kingdom have all been dealt with. There are still some remnants left, but I've left two hundred and fifty thousand troops there. We should be able to finish them off within a month."
Xu Yi didn't know why Xu Nian'an was so angry, or why he was taking his fury out on a people whose kingdom had already fallen.
But he would carry out Xu Nian'an's orders without hesitation.
Not only did Xu Yi have the blood of the Xu Family generals running through his veins, but in his eyes, those tribesmen of the Galloping Wolf Kingdom weren't even people.
For years, they had often harassed the other half of the Starry Sky Kingdom's territory, far away in the Star Luo Empire. Now they had even egged Li Xingyao into secretly establishing a duchy. They deserved to die.
The entire kingdom deserved to be wiped out!!!
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~!!!!
Hearing the commotion at Great Ming Square, countless people of the Great Ming Kingdom poured out into the streets of Ming City!
"Wait... Those warriors in golden dragon armor, so imposing and powerfully built—are they the Dragon Armor Army, the most elite troops in our Great Ming Kingdom?!"
The stories had spread back to the Great Ming Kingdom: they had swept through all of Gulei Kingdom in a single night, seized Xingyao City in a nighttime raid to reclaim lost territory, and slaughtered the Galloping Wolf Kingdom.
The Dragon Guard already had a loyal following, and people had affectionately begun calling them the Dragon Armor Army.
"Wait, look at that Great Ming Flag in the square! Is that... the king's carriage?"
"T-The king has left the palace to tour Great Ming!!!"
"What... what? I have to see him—the man who pulled Great Ming back from the brink of destruction and raised it to the pinnacle of the kingdoms!"
The Dragon Armor Army's return and Xu Nian'an's appearance in Ming City Square were soon passed from one person to ten, then from ten to a hundred. Before long, word had spread everywhere, and even more people gathered.
Forty thousand Imperial Guards joined in to maintain order.
"Go on. I don't know why you're doing this, but the Holy Spirit Cult and I will do everything we can to support you."
Inside the carriage.
After hearing Long Xiaoyao's words, Xu Nian'an slowly stood up, his face expressionless.
Only now did Xu Nian'an understand just how dangerous the Great Ming Kingdom was.
But he had never regretted it.
Step~!!!
Xu Nian'an stepped out beneath the blazing Sun.
He glanced at the pairs of feverish eyes around him, then fixed his gaze on the Dragon Guard.
"I went to the Heaven Dou Empire. A great deal happened, and I came to understand a great deal."
"That is why I made the decision I'm announcing today."
As he spoke, Xu Nian'an raised his head.
"I know that after this decision, Great Ming may lose the international standing it has gained. Many will invade and attack Great Ming under one pretext or another!"
"But I'll do it anyway. I want to ensure we never have to bow our heads before others again. I want the people of Great Ming to become one of the noblest peoples on this continent!"
"Back then, Gulei Kingdom dared to lie through its teeth, claiming it had lost soldiers as an excuse to surround our royal capital. Tomorrow, the two empires could barge right into our capital with clear consciences, burning, killing, and looting... So I've made a decision that goes against our ancestors' wishes!"
Flames gradually filled Xu Nian'an's eyes.
"I want the people of Great Ming to stand tall! I want them to never again fear being beaten or invaded, never again be forced to flee their homes and wander from place to place, and never again be bullied!"
"I want Great Ming to rise above the kingdoms and become the unprecedented third empire!"
"I want everyone to tremble... when they hear the words Great Ming!!!"
"I want to bring eternal peace and prosperity to Great Ming!!!"
The whole square fell silent. Not a sound could be heard but Xu Nian'an's ringing cries.
His words shook everyone to their core!
There was no denying it: Xu Nian'an was a fanatical supremacist, one without equal.
Most of what he was doing came from his own selfish desires, but Xu Nian'an knew full well that when one man rose to greatness, even his chickens and dogs ascended to heaven.
Since this battle was bound to happen sooner or later—
Then let it begin!
Let the storm come all the more violently!
Whoosh~!!!
Hearing Xu Nian'an's words, Xu Yi was overcome with joy, his blood surging through his veins.
"The Great Ming Empire! Xu Yi, commander of the Imperial Guard, pays his respects to Your Majesty!!!!"
At Xu Yi's shout, the whole square erupted.
One by one, people screamed with all their might, their cries ringing across the heavens and the earth.
"Long live the Great Ming Empire!!! Long live Emperor Ming!!!"
"Long live the Great Ming Empire!!! Long live Emperor Ming!!!"
"Long live the Great Ming Empire!!! Long live Emperor Ming!!!"
[Ding, congratulations, host. The Great Ming Kingdom has proven its strength to the continent. Would you like to proclaim yourself emperor now?] A gentle breeze swept over, making Xu Nian'an's black Python Robe billow. "I hereby announce!" "Great Ming shall shed its title of kingdom and become an empire!!!!"
[Ding, congratulations on successfully proclaiming yourself emperor after demonstrating your kingdom's strength to the continent. Rewards: ...]
[Empire Aura! Great Ming Imperial Seal, the Great Ming Empire's National Destiny Divine Beast, a juvenile Five-Clawed Golden Dragon, a three-hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring, adaptable; three hundred thousand Great Snow Dragon Cavalry! ... One hundred thousand Brocade Guard, one hundred thousand Western Depot troops ... Three Myriad World Character Summoning Cards!] The moment Xu Nian'an finished announcing his ascension to the throne, reward notifications began pouring into his mind. Three hundred thousand Great Snow Dragon Cavalry, one hundred thousand Brocade Guard, and one hundred thousand eunuchs from the Western Depot... Good heavens, that was a full half a million troops. Was this an empire's reward?! Xu Nian'an already had one hundred thousand elite troops, replenishing the ranks, and one hundred thousand militia in the Galloping Wolf Kingdom, in what had once been Xingyao City, the capital of the Star Shine Duchy. Add another two hundred thousand Dragon Guard and one hundred thousand Imperial Guard, and that made five hundred thousand troops. And he had recruited soldiers before going to the Heaven Dou Empire. His forces now numbered over a million. A million troops was only the starting point for an empire! An empire could raise that kind of force as easily as lifting a finger. With the system's rewards, what did it matter if the two empires joined forces?! Xu Nian'an had already changed Ming King Hall into Ming Emperor Hall. After returning to his palace, Xu Nian'an didn't absorb the Soul Ring right away. Instead, he immersed his consciousness in the system space.
[Empire Aura: With the Empire Aura's blessing, the combat strength of the empire's troops increases by one hundred percent!]
How was that just an Empire Aura? Wasn't it an aura of invincibility? In this era, when ordinary people made up the bulk of the fighting force, the Dragon Guard was the peak of human combat strength. With this blessing, wouldn't they be able to take on seven or eight enemies apiece?
[Great Ming Imperial Seal: An imperial artifact. Within the empire's territory, it can borrow fortune and influence the heavens and earth!]
[National Destiny Divine Beast, the juvenile Five-Clawed Golden Dragon: The empire in which this divine beast resides becomes the center of the world's fortune. The emperor's cultivation speed increases by one hundred percent. The empire's people will awaken a Martial Soul and possess Soul Power, without exception!]
When Xu Nian'an saw the notification about the National Destiny Divine Beast, the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon, his pupils shrank sharply.
If everyone would possess Soul Power, then every person in the Great Ming Empire had the chance to become a Soul Master.
With Soul Power to strengthen them, wouldn't the soldiers be able to take on ten enemies apiece with ease?
"Report, Your Majesty! Large numbers of Heaven Dou soldiers have appeared at the Heaven Dou border. They're attacking Gulei City!"
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[Ding, main quest triggered: Fight the empire's first battle!]
The author's note: Brothers, my collection on QQ Reading hasn't even reached six hundred. The trial recommendation seems like it's doomed. Tomorrow's the last day. Please follow and collect the book on QQ Reading, everyone, or this book is going to flop. I'm begging you!!!
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