Haidong had officially declared war.
Jin Dachang personally led the assault.
Haidong's Awakened had mobilized in full force.
These explosive reports had spread around the globe the moment they broke.
Countless satellites and drones now trained their cameras on the Haidong fleet and this stretch of Huaxia's coast.
Billions of people worldwide watched this unprecedented battle of the century!
When the Haidong fleet appeared on their screens.
When everyone saw the Awakened packed aboard its ships.
And Jin Dachang's inheritance power enveloping the entire fleet.
People in many countries could not help crying out in astonishment.
"Oh my God! Is this Haidong Country's full strength?"
"One hundred and thirty thousand Awakened! There can't be more than a handful of countries in the world that can match a force this powerful, can there?"
"I remember their inheritor never left Haidong after they activated their ancestor symbol. Now he's personally leading the expedition. They really must intend to flatten Huaxia!"
"Huaxia is finished this time. How could a single inheritor possibly stop Haidong's army?"
"Man... if you're weak, don't talk so tough. Huaxia brought this on itself."
People across the world marveled at Haidong's formidable lineup.
In everyone's eyes, Huaxia had no means of resisting now. Its destruction was imminent.
Meanwhile, jubilation swept through Haidong.
In shopping malls, on the streets, and in subway stations.
Every screen broadcast live footage of the Haidong fleet's advance.
Every time Jin Dachang appeared on-screen, earthshaking cheers erupted.
Haidong had little territory and previously had little say in international affairs. It could only trail behind powerful nations and cheer them on.
But now, who would dare look down on Haidong?
Once it swallowed Huaxia, Haidong would truly become East Asia's greatest nation!
From then on, Huaxia's 1.4 billion people would have to bow and scrape before the people of Haidong, no better than servants.
The thought immensely gratified the vanity and arrogance ingrained in Haidong's people.
Countless people poured into the streets, their faces flushed with excitement, cheering for Jin Dachang and celebrating their impending victory in advance!
Yet just as excitement swept through all of Haidong.
Every camera suddenly turned toward the shore.
At some point, a golden light had appeared on the previously tranquil beach.
It rose slowly, like the morning sun!
A terrifying aura surged around that golden light!
Whipped-up sand and stones formed enormous tornadoes that shot straight into the heavens!
The scene, like something out of a science-fiction movie, stunned everyone.
Even through their screens, many could sense how terrifying that aura was.
Within the golden light, they could faintly make out a tall, straight figure.
Was that...
Huaxia's inheritor?
Surely not!
Everyone's eyes went wide. Their first reaction was disbelief.
But besides Su Chen, who else in Huaxia could create such a spectacle?
Yet while everyone reeled in shock and confusion.
Something even more unexpected happened.
Rumble, rumble, rumble...
A series of deep, muffled booms suddenly sounded along the shore.
As Su Chen raised both hands, a cauldron as tall as a person slowly emerged from the sea.
Golden light wreathed its body as it floated dozens of meters above the water.
At a single glance, every person in Huaxia stared with eyes stretched wide.
They knew this cauldron all too well.
For it was Huaxia's supreme divine artifact!
The forefather of all cauldrons!
The Nine Provinces Cauldron!
Su Chen had actually brought the Nine Provinces Cauldron here and hidden it in the sea beforehand?
What exactly was he planning?
The Haidong fleet was now only half a kilometer to a kilometer from the shore.
Even ordinary people could clearly see what was happening on the beach.
The instant Su Chen released his inheritance power, Jin Dachang's relaxed expression froze on his face.
Now, with the Nine Provinces Cauldron appearing as well, all the Haidong Awakened felt an invisible pressure bearing down on them, filling their hearts with dread.
"What's going on? Isn't that Huaxia's ancestor symbol?"
"Can ancestor symbols be used as weapons? I've never heard of that!"
"Impossible! A symbol houses an ancestor's remnant soul. Even an inheritor can't command it!"
"Fuck! Huaxia's ancestor symbol is flying, and you call that impossible to command?"
"What the hell is happening? Didn't they say Huaxia's inheritor was weak? He doesn't look weak!"
Jin Dachang's expression darkened. Despite his attempts to conceal it, a trace of horror still crept into his eyes.
Earlier, when Su Chen's inheritance power remained concealed, he had felt little.
But now, he saw the almost tangible golden currents swirling around Su Chen and the hurricane rising skyward across the entire beach.
However arrogant Jin Dachang was, he clearly recognized the gulf between himself and Su Chen.
Was this the power of an ancestor from four thousand years ago?
Was this the inheritance of Huaxia's first emperor?
Although he had prepared himself mentally, he had never imagined Su Chen's inheritance power would be this immense!
Why!
Why wasn't Dayu an ancestor of Haidong Country!
Why was I so far beneath that brat!
Jin Dachang seethed with jealousy and hatred, but he still acted decisively, ordering the fleet to stop.
He might be impulsive, but he was no fool.
The strength Su Chen displayed, combined with the Nine Provinces Cauldron's unknown capabilities.
Both surprised and shocked Jin Dachang, forcing him to proceed cautiously.
He no longer cared about saving face and immediately issued another order, intending to withdraw the fleet.
Unfortunately.
From the moment they entered Huaxia's waters, retreat had ceased to be their choice.
Before Jin Dachang's order could be passed down, Su Chen's voice rang out.
"There's a song in Huaxia that says it well!"
"When friends arrive, we have fine wine; when jackals come, we have hunting rifles!"
"There's also an ancient saying in Huaxia that puts it well!"
"Barbarians from every quarter, should any dare invade, their nations shall be destroyed, their people exterminated, and their descendants wiped out!"
Divine light flashed in Su Chen's eyes. Bolstered by his inheritance power, his voice resounded through heaven and earth.
Everyone in Huaxia stirred, their entire bodies tingling as though an electric current had passed through them.
Though they did not know where the saying came from.
That did nothing to diminish the shock in their hearts.
Barbarians from every quarter, should any dare invade, their nations shall be destroyed, their people exterminated, and their descendants wiped out!
What commanding power!
This was the spirit our great Huaxia should possess.
Before this, no one had believed in Huaxia's chances.
Even Huaxia's own people had thought victory against Haidong was impossible.
But now.
As they watched the imposing Su Chen and the Nine Provinces Cauldron hovering over the sea.
A spark of hope suddenly rose in the hearts of Huaxia's people.
Su Chen had already created one miracle.
Perhaps there would be another this time!
Just as everyone in Huaxia wanted to hope, yet hardly dared to.
Su Chen's voice rang out again.
"Huaxia may be kind, but it must never be bullied!"
"Huaxia may be vast, but outsiders shall not lay claim to so much as an inch!"
"On Huaxia's soil, along the shores of the Nine Provinces, how could foreign barbarians be allowed to run rampant!"
As Su Chen spread his hands apart, the Nine Provinces Cauldron floating in midair suddenly let out an earthshaking boom, transforming into a hazy phantom that rapidly expanded!
In a mere instant, the person-height cauldron had become a phantom thousands of meters in length and width, hovering above the Haidong fleet like a mountain.
Utterly unprepared for such a horrifying sight, the Haidong Awakened tilted their heads back and stood frozen in terror.
"Four thousand years ago, the Nine Provinces Cauldron safeguarded the fortune of the realm and sheltered the people of Great Xia!"
"Four thousand years later, this divine artifact of Huaxia can still protect our descendants! Protect Huaxia's lands and nation!"
The Nine Provinces Cauldron let out another deafening boom, as though answering him.
As Su Chen pressed both hands downward, the mountainlike phantom crashed down.
Against the immense phantom of the Nine Provinces Cauldron, Jin Dachang's inheritance power protecting the fleet proved utterly useless.
At the first touch, it shattered completely and vanished.
"Stop!"
"Quick! Jump overboard!"
"Hurry!"
Seeing this, the Haidong Awakened did not dare hesitate for even a moment. They hastily abandoned their ships and fled.
One hundred and thirty thousand Awakened plunged into the sea like dumplings dropped into a pot, scrambling to get ahead of one another.
BOOM!!!
With a tremendous crash, waves blotted out the sky.
The Haidong fleet, so full of swagger just a moment earlier, was instantly driven to the seabed by the Nine Provinces Cauldron.
Dozens of warships broke apart and shattered beneath the crushing pressure, ultimately reduced to dust!
As the waves subsided, most of the Nine Provinces Cauldron's enormous body still stood above the sea.
Like an ancient, imposing city.
From distant antiquity to the present, it had always stood guard over Huaxia's lands, protecting its people!
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