The Treaty of Versailles!
Star Luo Emperor Dai Haochen's eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
He knew about the explosion at the Great God Lake Defense Line last night.
He wasn't the only one who knew. Nearly everyone in Star Luo City had seen it.
The explosion had been deafening, and the light that followed had been blinding.
He had sent people to investigate, but the situation was urgent, and the Great God Lake Defense Line was some distance from Star Luo City.
He waited and waited, but in the end, the people he had sent still hadn't returned.
So he closed his eyes for a little while.
He had only dozed for a moment, and now, the instant he opened his eyes, he was being told that the Great Ming Empire's elite troops had surrounded Star Luo City???
He couldn't make sense of it.
He had no idea how the Great Ming Empire had broken through the Great God Lake Defense Line, raced hundreds of kilometers overnight, and successfully surrounded Star Luo City.
Bang~!!! Rumble!!!
Just as Dai Haochen was still thinking, a rumble suddenly came from Star Luo City's north gate.
A group of people came stumbling over.
"Disaster, Your Majesty! The north gate has fallen. The Great Ming Iron Cavalry is here!"
"Your Majesty, we should take the remaining troops and move the capital!"
"As long as the green hills remain, we won't run out of firewood!"
"Your Majesty, as long as you leave Star Luo City, you'll have a chance to rise again!"
The ministers all chimed in, but Dai Haochen remained rooted to the spot, not moving an inch.
"Father!"
At that moment, a child's still-innocent voice rang out.
Dai Haochen abruptly raised his head and looked at the three people approaching from behind him.
"Weisi, Empress, Mubai!"
It was Dai Weisi, Empress Zhu, and Dai Mubai, who had only recently learned to walk.
Dai Haochen's heart softened at once.
In truth, he had already considered countless solutions in that brief moment.
But he had rejected every one of them.
The Star Luo Empire was one of only two empires on the Douluo Continent, a venerable power. Generations of the Dai Family had devoted their lives to bringing it to where it stood today.
And now, he had squandered it all.
He couldn't bring himself to move the capital.
Even if he died in battle here, he would still have the face to meet his ancestors.
But when he saw his eldest son, Dai Weisi, Empress Zhu, and even his younger son, Dai Mubai, who had only just learned to walk, he hesitated.
Dai Haochen parted his dry lips.
"So this is the Star Luo Imperial Palace... No wonder. It's far more luxurious than the Galloping Wolf Kingdom."
Unfortunately, before he could finally say those two words, dozens of figures suddenly appeared on the distant horizon.
"They're all here. Looks like we won't have to hunt them down one by one."
Twelve Soul Douluo and nearly thirty Soul Saints—Holy Spirit Cult had sent out its forces.
In the blink of an eye, they surrounded everyone in the imperial palace.
"It's over. The Star Luo Empire is finished!"
Hum~!!!
Just then, a brilliant starlight shimmered beyond the imperial palace.
"Well, I didn't expect the Star Luo Empire to have such a powerful Soul Master."
The twelve deacons exchanged glances. Six of them immediately shot into the air, flying toward the brilliant starlight.
"Stay right where you are, and you may still enjoy a life of wealth and privilege, second only to one person and above thousands."
"Don't put up any more futile resistance. If you disobey us, we can't guarantee your safety."
Crack~ Crack~!!!
Dai Haochen clenched both fists tight.
He felt nothing but deep humiliation. How dare they? How could they...? Truly, when a tiger falls from the mountain, even dogs dare to bully it.
If the Clear Sky Sect were still around, how would a mere few Soul Douluo dare!
Unfortunately, the past was the past, and the present was the present.
The Star Luo Empire now couldn't match the Great Ming Empire at the height of its power, whether in troop numbers or Soul Masters!
Xingyao City.
Xu Nian'an worked through the night to draft the Star Luo defeat treaty.
That's right. Xu Nian'an hadn't planned to wipe out the Star Luo Empire in one fell swoop.
What a joke.
How vast was the entire Star Luo Empire? Could a country of just a few million people really manage it?
Take too big a step, and you'll tear your balls.
If the Great Ming people became fewer than the outsiders, that would be the first sign that the empire was on the verge of collapse.
They could freely carry out a change-of-country plan. Given enough time, after rounding things off, Xu Nian'an wouldn't have won at all—he'd just have won someone else's territory for them.
Just look at that modern country that imported black people.
For Xu Nian'an, an absolute racist, that was simply intolerable.
Xu Nian'an couldn't just arrive at a city and slaughter everyone, could he?
So destroying the Star Luo Empire was out of the question, at least for now.
The Great Ming population was simply too small.
It wasn't until daybreak that Xu Nian'an received word from Star Luo City in Xingyao City.
"Report, Your Majesty! We've successfully surrounded and captured Star Luo City, and taken Star Luo Emperor Dai Haochen alive!"
Xu Nian'an looked at the treaty in his hands and nodded with satisfaction.
"Prepare the carriage. We're leaving for Star Luo City at once!"
Though Xu Nian'an didn't plan to destroy the Star Luo Empire, they had just won a war against the other side. The defeated country had to pay compensation, and the treaty would keep them in check for decades. Xu Nian'an could use those decades to grow the population.
Then he could rule this continent more effectively.
The following afternoon.
The luxurious carriage of the Great Ming Empire stopped outside Star Luo City.
Xu Nian'an had deliberately changed into a suit of armor and chosen a dragon steed with the bloodline of a lesser dragon.
Seated atop the towering horse, he saw a sea of white. The Great Snow Dragon Cavalry had completely taken control of Star Luo City.
Countless Dragon Guards in golden dragon armor stood beside Xu Nian'an.
"Report! After taking Star Luo City, the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry has not entered a single household or taken a single grain of food!"
As Xu Nian'an rode into Star Luo City, the commander of the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry immediately stepped forward to report.
Xu Nian'an nodded.
Though he didn't care, he also didn't want the people of the continent to see the Great Ming Empire as an invading power.
Even if he didn't care.
A defeated country had to act like one.
But Xu Nian'an knew that instead of taking money from these poor commoners, it was better to bleed the Star Luo Imperial Family dry.
Standing before the Star Luo Imperial Palace, Xu Nian'an couldn't help but reflect.
"In these past two thousand years, I'm probably the only one who's ever fought his way here, right?"
Star Luo Empire's conference room.
Dai Haochen had spent the whole day on pins and needles. In the end, he still got to see that man.
"I can let you continue as emperor of the Star Luo Empire."
Whoosh~!!!
The moment Xu Nian'an spoke, countless gazes turned toward him.
Dai Haochen's face lit up with delight.
He had thought he wouldn't survive, and that the Star Luo Empire would be demoted to a kingdom, with his eldest son taking his place. (That would make the Star Luo Empire easier to control.)
Now it seemed he wouldn't have to die, and the empire wouldn't be demoted either.
"But as the defeated country, you must sign several conditions."
Xu Nian'an took out the Treaty of Versailles.
It had three main points: territorial division, military restrictions, and war reparations.