Battle was imminent

Three days later.

Haidong Country.

Fuzha Harbor.

Jin Dachang stood with his hands behind his back, his face showing not the slightest frustration, only excitement.

Before him lay the turbulent sea, and a massive warship was already waiting by the shore.

Anyone familiar with military hardware would recognize it at a glance.

The largest of those warships was called the Mule, Haidong's amphibious assault ship.

It was Haidong's largest and most technologically advanced naval vessel.

Dozens of other large warships surrounded the Mule.

A year ago, these had been the naval forces Haidong took such pride in.

Now, they could serve only as transport across the sea.

For more than a hundred thousand Awakened from Haidong Country had gathered behind Jin Dachang.

The crowd surged, their voices drowning out even the warships' horns.

Their Awakening Power mingled and surged, their collective might shaking the heavens.

Compared with this power, the strength of modern weapons was hardly worth mentioning.

"So what if he received Dayu's legacy? In the end, he's just a young man barely into his twenties. He can't keep his composure!"

"I really gave him too much credit before."

Jin Dachang smiled coldly and turned his gaze to the man beside him.

"Is everything ready?"

The man stiffened, then hurriedly bowed and answered.

"All 130,000 Awakened of Haidong Country have assembled and await your orders, Commander!"

"Good!"

Jin Dachang laughed loudly and turned to face the sea of people behind him.

"Listen up, all of you!"

The moment Jin Dachang spoke, the noisy docks fell silent.

These hundred thousand-plus Awakened were all lofty figures within Haidong Country.

Yet not one of them dared act out before Jin Dachang.

"King Taejong's name has inspired awe through the ages. Everyone in Haidong reveres him!"

"You were all ordinary citizens before."

"Only through our ancestor's grace were you able to awaken your bloodlines and rise above others!"

"Now that our ancestor's name has been sullied, what should you do?"

As soon as Jin Dachang finished speaking, deafening cries erupted throughout the crowd.

"Punish Huaxia!"

"Kill their inheritor!"

"Crush Huaxia! Make the whole world tremble!"

As 130,000 Awakened roared together, the entire dock began to tremble.

Everyone was fired up, filled with absolute confidence in victory.

Only a handful of countries in the world today could rival Haidong Country.

And in East Asia, there was not a single one.

In their eyes, Huaxia's meager strength could be swept aside effortlessly. They could not lose even if they tried.

At this moment, they all held Huaxia in utter contempt.

With just one inheritor, you dare challenge Haidong? Who gave you the nerve?

They would not even need all 130,000 Awakened.

Even ten or twenty thousand would sweep away everything in their path.

Mobilizing such a massive force was like firing a cannon at a mosquito!

Still, many of them understood.

Besides killing Huaxia's inheritor, Jin Dachang had another reason for mobilizing his entire force: he intended to annex Huaxia.

After all, chances like this, when someone practically offered their face up to be slapped, did not come along every day.

If they could truly fulfill their long-held ambition this time.

The Big Stick Nation's territory would expand nearly a hundredfold!

The benefits they, as Awakened, would receive were beyond imagination.

Those 130,000 Awakened were now like starving wolves that had caught the scent of blood.

Every one of them had greed in their eyes, howling with excitement.

Seeing this, Jin Dachang could not keep a trace of smug satisfaction from his eyes. Seizing the moment, he swept his hand toward the turbulent sea.

"Descendants of King Taejong!"

"The enemy is right across the sea!"

"Boundless glory and wealth await across the sea!"

"Vast, fertile lands await across the sea!"

"Crush Huaxia, and all of it will be yours!"

Brimming with confidence, Jin Dachang turned and leaped straight onto the bow of the Mule.

"Everyone, board the ships!"

"To war!"

Their blood already boiling, the 130,000 Awakened immediately surged toward the warships by the docks, scrambling to get ahead when they heard the order.

Every face was filled with greed and impatience.

Huaxia.

Somewhere along the coast.

The beach was deserted.

Not a single fishing boat could be seen on the sea.

Apart from the sound of waves striking the rocks, all was quiet.

Behind the beach, however, lay a mangrove forest stretching for dozens of miles.

A closer look would reveal countless figures hidden beneath its dense canopy.

Some wore military uniforms, while others wore ordinary clothes.

They were spread out, occupying almost the entire vast mangrove forest.

Three days earlier.

At the same time Zhu Yuanzheng issued his statement, he had also issued a mobilization order.

Unlike a normal mobilization order.

This one was not addressed to the entire nation, but sent to individuals.

Within Huaxia alone, Dayu had three hundred million descendants.

With such a vast pool, even weeding out the undesirable elements would have little impact.

However, there were also many elderly people and children among them.

Even if they wanted to come, Su Chen would never agree.

War was no game. Even with victory assured, they could not put the elderly and children at risk.

Moreover, so far, only Su Chen and the other two knew exactly how many descendants Dayu had.

To any ordinary person, resisting Awakened with the strength of ordinary people was no different from suicide.

Being full of passion online, only to grow frightened and back down when the moment arrived, was human nature too.

So the mobilization order was only a call to action. No one would be forced.

But what shocked Su Chen was this.

Even knowing they could not prevail.

Even knowing they were going to their deaths.

The number of eligible people who accepted the call still quickly exceeded a hundred million, and kept climbing!

Who said the sons and daughters of Huaxia lacked courage!

When their country was at stake, even ordinary people would disregard their own lives!

Still, shock was one thing.

Gathering all those descendants of Dayu scattered across the country in such a short time.

That was simply impossible.

Even if it were possible, Su Chen would not do it.

The enemy had only a mere hundred thousand or so Awakened.

Even if Huaxia gathered just one percent of Dayu's descendants, that would be three million people.

Three million against a hundred thousand or so-one stomp from each person would flatten them outright.

Once the fighting started, Haidong Country's paltry number of Awakened might not even be enough to go around.

Mobilizing the entire nation to bring over a hundred million people from every corner of the country.

Only for the vast majority to take one look at the sea and then go home.

Would that not be a waste of manpower and money?

So, this time, they first selected people from active-duty personnel and veterans.

Their loyalty to their country was beyond question, and their identities and backgrounds were all well documented.

Gathering them for transport would also save time and resources.

From the three million active-duty personnel alone, they selected 160,000 descendants of Dayu.

Among the seven or eight million veterans, they screened out more than 300,000.

Together, they already numbered 500,000, far surpassing Haidong's Awakened.

But to leave nothing to chance, those 500,000 were only half the force.

The other half came from all walks of life in Huaxia.

There were office workers, university students, factory workers, and farmers.

But regardless of their status or level of education.

They all held the same burning love for Huaxia.

The same hot blood, ready to be shed for their country, flowed through their veins.

Three days!

One million, three thousand, seven hundred and fifty-six people!

This was the force Huaxia would send against Haidong!