Norton from Biyang has nothing better to do than get into mischief.
He has surpassed the outrageous and immoral Papal State administration of the past, reaching an unprecedented level... a beast!
It has to be said that none of the people who come out of the Church are normal.
However, Norton felt there was nothing wrong with his training methods.
As a member of royalty, Maria shouldn't have any compassion. In this filthy upper class of the Southern Continent, someone like her would undoubtedly be eaten alive, leaving not even bones.
Moreover, with chaos looming, if Maria remains so naive, she will only meet a tragic end.
Norton's current training, on the contrary, enables Maria to protect herself.
So, it seems Norton actually did a good deed!
As for why chaos is imminent? That's none of your concern.
Norton's life returned to normal, and he paid little attention to or cared about anything happening outside.
While the Pressure can control the entire Southern Continent at all times, processing all the information is very troublesome. Just like Superman's super hearing and super vision, you can indeed completely control everything's development, but the vast territory and the various intertwined information are overwhelming.
Wang Ermazi can clearly sense when Mao San and his wife are having sex, even when Wang Ermazi is defecating. Such a level of awareness is truly numbing.
Therefore, he basically only focuses on what he wants to know, such as the situation in various countries and the court affairs of the Aodelan Empire.
For example, there was Abraham, who secretly hid away to drink Norton's bathwater in preparation for advancing his rank; and there was Duoxia, who has now entered the Holy Lord Church and wants to plot with the current Pope again to suppress Norton.
Everyone in the Southern Continent has their own things to do and is very busy. Those China affairs are especially busy.
In the winter of 1569, Emperor Yalian LIII of the Holy Noah Empire passed away, plunging the nation into grief. His eldest son Yalian LIV, was appointed to succeed him in this time of crisis, taking the title of 'Emperor Anza'.
At this critical juncture, the tribe known as the ' Liba, ' which had originally signed the Balkan Agreement, launched a surprise attack with the support of the Kaimen Empire. Taking advantage of the unstable political situation and the lack of submission of the military nobles in the Holy Noah Empire, they conquered the border defenses of the Holy Noah Empire in March, and then marched straight into the heart of the empire, reaching the capital of the Holy Noah Empire in just a year and a half.
In the winter of 1570, the news spread, shocking the Southern Continent.
For the sake of the stability of the Holy Noah Empire, the newly enthroned Emperor Yalian LIV of Onsa had no choice but to sign the " Imperial City Accord " with the Liba Tribe outside the imperial city of the Holy Noah Empire, paying reparations of grain, gold and silver, and ceding border land in order to reach a peace agreement.
The Liba Tribe made a fortune and happily turned back home.
In reality, they had no choice but to go back, because armies from all over the Holy Noah Empire were already converging on this place, and if they didn't return soon, they would be surrounded.
The newly enthroned Emperor Ansa suffered such a humiliating disgrace that his reputation plummeted throughout the Holy Noah Empire, and some even began to question whether he was a qualified heir to the throne.
Regardless of the circumstances, this war has brought the relationship between the Kaimen Empire and the Holy Noah Empire to a freezing point. If they weren't both renowned and powerful empires in the Southern Continent, they would probably have already broken into each other.
The events surrounding the Holy Noah Empire served as a wake-up call for other nations.
The current monarchs of various countries are all quite old now, and may only have a dozen or so years left to live. However, they need to start making necessary plans as soon as possible, so that when the Southern Continent undergoes a major upheaval, the originally stable situation will not be overturned due to the death of the emperor.
Thus, starting in 1570, the Aodelan Empire resumed transporting holy water. In addition, it began to produce cannons, warships, and muskets on a large scale, and consciously increased the number of troops, launching an arms race.
Such a large-scale operation could not be kept secret from other countries.
The Holy Boya Empire, which had the deepest conflict with the Aodelan Empire, followed suit and joined the fray. Subsequently, other empires also began preparing for arms production. The entire Southern Continent had become a powder keg, ready to be ignited at the last moment.
The Aodelan Empire and the Holy Boya Empire have made no attempt to conceal their true intentions. During military buildup, convoys transporting holy water have been repeatedly intercepted, with the holy water being dumped into rivers or the ocean.
The caravans of the Holy Boya Empire were repeatedly intercepted, and all their goods were seized by the Aodelan Empire.
However, this was just a minor skirmish, hardly even a battle; it was more like the accumulation of pent-up hatred between the two sides.
Meanwhile, the Kaimen Empire, the Aidebao Empire, and the Madrid Empire also had many conflicts with the Holy Boya Empire and the Holy Noah Empire, and the hatred between the two sides deepened.
Actually, their relationship was somewhat ambiguous.
The Aodelan Empire and the Aidebao Empire are staunch allies. Both were sanctioned by the Holy Boya Empire's policy of closing its seas to the seas, and they are also related by blood, so they are inseparable.
The Kaimen Empire, located on the other side of the Southern Continent, is not subject to the Holy Boya Empire's maritime blockade. However, it, in turn, blocks the seas of the Aodelan Empire along with the Holy Boya Empire. The conflict between the two is far less intense than the Holy Noah Empire, coupled with competition for maritime interests with the Holy Boya Empire. Thus, it remains allied with the Aodelan Empire based on blood ties.
The Madrid Empire, on the other hand, was associated with the Aodelan Empire due to geographical reasons.
Regardless, the situation is clear: the powder keg is about to burst.
In the summer of 1571, Emperor Miles XIII of the Aodelan Empire, feeling that he could no longer delay due to his age, and having confirmed that the Pale God was still stable, met with Emperor Kaimen XVI of the Kaimen Empire and Emperor Edward XVII. The three parties signed an alliance treaty against the Holy Noah Empire at the Aodelan Empire's palace, deciding that in the event of war between either party and the Holy Boya Empire, the other party would unconditionally provide all available military and other assistance and support.
This treaty, once signed, almost completely ignited tensions. Enraged and fearful, Emperor Yalian LIV of Onsa was forced to sign the Wartime Mutual Assistance Treaty with Emperor Noah XIII of the Holy Boya Empire in February of the following year, after thoroughly stabilizing the national situation and taking control of all political and military affairs. This was done to counter the three kingdoms of Aodelan and prevent them from uniting and annexing the two countries.
Thus, the two major military blocs of the Southern Continent were fully established, with only the Madrid Empire remaining temporarily aloof.
After the formation of the two major imperialist military blocs, in order to compete for hegemony over the Southern Continent, the countries actively expanded their armies and prepared for war, continuously increasing their defense budgets and recruiting soldiers to accumulate strength for each other.
Amid such a tense international situation, all sorts of inventions that were previously unused are once again gaining attention, with the aim of increasing productivity and improving the country's overall ability to mobilize resources.
This has led to the rapid development of science and technology and culture in the Southern Continent in just a few years.
The national strength of each country experienced explosive growth, and the intensity of their military personnel far exceeded that of the Church wars during the Norton era. The army of the Aodelan Empire numbered as many as 3.2 million, while the army of the Kaimen Empire numbered as many as 4.8 million.
As long-established empires, the Holy Noah and Holy Boya Empire together had an army of over nine million.
While this is related to the large geographical area of this world, such a large number of troops would still be an enormous expenditure for any country in this world today.
Such a buildup of power cannot be sustained for many years, which means that war is bound to break out in the near future!