For an Eternal Great Enterprise, How Could They Quibble over Momentary Gains and Losses! (Please Subscribe and Vote with Monthly Tickets)

Romanov had left so decisively, even with a hint of haste, because he could clearly feel the anger and humiliation pent up in his chest teetering on the brink of eruption.

If he lingered even a moment longer, he feared he really would throw all caution aside and fight Li Chen right there in Heavenly Strategy's Golden Throne Hall!

Then there would be no room left for compromise, and the two nations would be locked in a struggle that could end only with one side's destruction.

Leaving now meant losing all face, but at least it preserved a faint thread of hope for the storm-tossed Great Luo Dynasty. Returning to devise another plan was the only expedient course.

Once Romanov's figure had disappeared completely, the oppressive atmosphere in the hall eased somewhat. The Minister of Rites stepped forward, his face heavy with worry, and addressed the throne. "Your Majesty, were we perhaps too forceful just now? Romanov is, after all, Daluo's patriarch, and represents the dignity of an entire nation.

"To humiliate him like this may stir outrage throughout Daluo and drive them to fight us to the death. Daluo has held the Far North for thousands of years and possesses deep reserves of strength. If they fight regardless of the cost, even a victory for our army may prove a bitter one, with losses beyond measure."

Before he had finished, an old general clad in Black Armor, his tiger-like eyes blazing with authority, strode forward and cut him off in a voice like a great bell. "Pedantic nonsense! I, Guo Poyun, beg Your Majesty not to heed such words of cowardice!"

He was a notorious warmonger in the Heavenly Strategy Dynasty, and now his manner was fiercer than ever. "Daluo is beset by troubles within and enemies without. Sergei's