Tian Hun Imperial Palace, within the Imperial Study.
The Emperor of the Tian Hun Empire sat upright behind the imperial desk, reviewing the memorials that required his approval for the day. To his upper right, however, lay two specific memorials stacked together, bearing his special vermilion endorsements.
These two specially endorsed memorials, from bottom to top, represented the turning-point battles and outcomes of the war between the original three Douluo Empires and the Sun Moon Empire.
The first was the surprise attack on the Sun Moon Imperial Palace and the assassination of Xu Tianran;
The second was the Star Luo Army's decisive victory over the Sun Moon Army.
Anyone with a discerning eye could see that these two turning points marked the Sun Moon Empire's transition from prosperity to decline. Yet conspicuously absent from this list was any turning-point victory secured by the Tian Hun Army.
In fact, their Tian Hun Empire had performed the worst!
In the early stages, they were caught off guard by the Sun Moon Empire's surprise attacks, losing nearly half the nation's territory. The enemy had even threatened their imperial capital—"Tiandou City" at one point.
Fortunately, major factions later stepped in with reinforcements—particularly the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—which finally suppressed the Sun Moon Empire's offensive and reclaimed nearly half of the lost territory.
Even so, a quarter of their territory remained under Sun Moon control, dragging the conflict into a war of attrition.
From the start of this war up to the present, half of the Tian Hun Empire's territory had suffered devastating blows. The "scorched earth" strategy adopted by the Sun Moon Empire was purely destructive, harming others without benefiting themselves.
Financially, the pressure on the Tian Hun Empire's national treasury had intensified immensely. If the war continued like this, even with the Dou Ling Empire's support, they ran a very real risk of total economic collapse.
As a result, the voices of opposition within the nation were growing louder by the day.
If this war continued any longer... frankly, it just wasn't worth it!
Even the Tian Hun Emperor himself had entertained this thought on several occasions, only to stifle it time and time again.
This war had to be fought to the end!
No matter what, they had to ensure the Sun Moon Empire lost the capacity to ever invade them again. That was the prerequisite. Secondly, they needed to extract enough benefits from the Sun Moon Empire to compensate for their losses.
As for utterly annihilating the Sun Moon Empire... the Tian Hun Emperor's desire for that had faded.
Besides, the domestic opposition was growing, emphasizing the need for the nation to rest and recuperate. Had the Sun Moon Empire not still occupied their soil, the anti-war voices would have already become the mainstream consensus.
"It's difficult..."
Frowning, he let out a slight sigh.
Just as the Tian Hun Emperor lowered his head to continue reviewing his memorials, hurried footsteps echoed from outside the Imperial Study.
"Your Majesty."
A sharp, slightly effeminate voice called out from beyond the doors. "A messenger dispatched by Marshal Li Wu requests an audience."
"Oh!?"
Hearing this, the Tian Hun Emperor's spirits lifted. "Quickly! Let him in!"
A moment later, a messenger entered the doors, led by a eunuch. The messenger immediately dropped to one knee and reported loudly, "Report! Your Majesty, a great victory! The Sun Moon Army has been completely expelled from our borders, and all lost territory has been reclaimed! Furthermore, the Sun Moon Army was forced into a dead end in the Sun Moon waters. Kong Deming has surrendered!"
This sudden news struck him like a bolt of lightning, leaving the Tian Hun Emperor stunned on his throne. Then, his tightly furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and the corners of his lips curled upward into a smile.
He shot up from his seat and said excitedly, "Come! Say that again!"
"A great victory! Our lands have been reclaimed, and the Sun Moon has surrendered!" the messenger repeated, his voice booming with irrepressible joy.
"Hahaha—!"
The Tian Hun Emperor threw his head back and laughed, utterly elated.
At this moment, he felt a profound sense of relief throughout his entire body, as if a massive weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Because he had waited far too long for a victory won by the Tian Hun Empire's own forces!
With a grand sweep of his sleeve, he declared boldly, "Pass down my decree!"
"I shall host a grand banquet to reward the three armies!"
"By your command!"
At this moment, boundless heroic ambition surged within the Tian Hun Emperor's heart.
The Sun Moon Empire had lost!
They had lost completely and utterly!
It took quite a while for the Tian Hun Emperor to finally come down from this emotional high. Seeing the messenger still kneeling on one knee, he waved his hand and said, "Return now, and deliver my decree on my behalf."
However, "Your Majesty, I still have another matter to report."
"Oh?"
Seeing the man's slight hesitation, the Tian Hun Emperor furrowed his brow slightly. "What is it?"
The messenger dared not delay and hastily presented a letter. "Your Majesty, this is a letter that the major sects wished to deliver to you."
Hearing this, the Emperor's confusion deepened. He took the letter, dismissed the messenger, and opened it. The contents made his pupils constrict slightly.
"This—... Well, so be it..."
...
The next day, in the imperial court of the Tian Hun Empire.
The news of the Sun Moon Empire's final army under Kong Deming's command surrendering had already spread; every minister in the court was aware of it.
And precisely because of this...
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! This is a great joy for our Tian Hun! The Sun Moon Empire's surrender is a testament to Your Majesty's divine wisdom!"
One minister took the lead, and the others quickly echoed him. For a time, voices of praise echoed ceaselessly across the court.
The Tian Hun Emperor observed this with satisfaction, raising a hand slightly to signal for silence before proclaiming loudly, "This victory is the result of our Tian Hun Empire standing united as one and fighting valiantly against the enemy. I have summoned you all today, firstly, to celebrate this triumph together. This occasion calls for a nationwide celebration, and the imperial clan shall gather to share in the joy!"
At these words, no minister objected. Although the empire had a hundred things waiting to be rebuilt and the national treasury's funds should ideally be spent on reconstruction, a nationwide celebration was indeed necessary to rouse the demoralized populace and commemorate the great achievements.
Seeing this, the Tian Hun Emperor felt deeply gratified. Thus, he smoothly transitioned to the second matter.
"Yesterday, alongside the news of our victory, I also received a letter. The contents stated that the major factions, upon seeing Kong Deming choose to surrender, decided to spare the Sun Moon Empire. After all, the Sun Moon Imperial Palace has been destroyed and Xu Tianran is dead... Since the chief culprit has met his rightful end, there is no need to exterminate them completely."
"This... I feel..."
"...Oh right, it seems..."
"..."
Talks of not launching any further military campaigns against the Sun Moon Empire, and instead demanding territorial concessions and reparations following their surrender... these discussions gradually drowned out the voices calling for the complete annihilation of the Sun Moon Empire.
This scene gave the Tian Hun Emperor a moment of clarity. The present was different from the past. With his mind already made up, and the calls for a "ceasefire" growing louder within the court, the Tian Hun Emperor clearly made his definitive decision.
However, now was not the time to debate this. Casually saying, "We will discuss this further later," he brushed the topic aside and brought up the third matter: how to divide the spoils extracted from the Sun Moon Empire. Because accepting the Sun Moon Empire's surrender meant they could no longer carve up the territory as they had originally planned when discussing the "annihilation" of the nation.
The division of spoils had to be recalculated.
At this, a greedy glint immediately flashed in the ministers' eyes.
One minister eagerly volunteered, "Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, the Sun Moon Empire possesses many fertile and wealthy regions. We should prioritize seizing those resource-rich cities, especially the mining hubs, which can provide a solid material foundation for the empire's future development."
"Indeed, indeed," another minister quickly chimed in. "There are also the commercially prosperous metropolises. Controlling them will ensure the empire's economy flourishes."
The ministers threw out suggestions one after another, fiercely debating how to divide the spoils as if the wealth and territory of the Sun Moon Empire were already firmly in their grasp.
Over in the Star Luo Empire, the scene was quite similar. After declaring a nationwide celebration and a gathering of the imperial clan, someone also suggested offering sacrifices to the heavens, but Xu Jiawei—who was quite tempted—temporarily suppressed the idea.
Following this, Xu Jiawei and his ministers discussed the terms of the Sun Moon Empire's surrender. Naturally, this included the ceasefire agreement.
"Since all of you acknowledge the ceasefire, we must renegotiate the division of benefits." Xu Jiawei's gaze swept across the assembly as he spoke slowly. "Our joint victory with the Tian Hun Empire over the Sun Moon Empire is the glory of Star Luo. Now, we must strategize how to extract the maximum possible benefit from this triumph."
The ministers nodded in agreement and began voicing their opinions. Unlike the Tian Hun Empire, while equally valuing soul tools and rare metals, the Star Luo Empire placed greater emphasis on their own strategic territorial layout and the recruitment of talent.
At this moment, a general stood up and spoke. "Your Majesty, we must focus on consolidating our border defenses. After annexing the Sun Moon Empire's territory, we should integrate the regions of the new Sun Moon Empire that border our newly expanded territory into our defensive system, ensuring the absolute security of the new Star Luo Empire."
Following that, a strategist offered his advice. "Your Majesty. Furthermore, the recruitment of talent is of utmost importance. The Sun Moon Empire is not lacking in capable and brilliant minds. We can offer them generous conditions to draw them to our nation and serve the empire."
With the decline of the Sun Moon Empire, there would inevitably be those who choose to abandon their homeland. And the Star Luo Empire had its sights set on these very people.
As long as they had the talent and the soul tool technology, then with vigorous development, their Star Luo Empire would become the next Sun Moon Empire. When that time came... the Star Luo Empire also harbored ambitions of unifying the continent!
After all, Xu Jiawei was a young and ambitious emperor. Coupled with the fact that the Star Luo Empire boasted the most powerful military among the original three Douluo Empires, it wasn't strange for him to harbor such ambitions.
Unlike the Sun Moon Empire, they didn't hold strong "sectarian prejudices." Clearly, his line of thought aligned with what Chen Junting had told Ning Tian back in Dongyang City: if any of the original three Douluo Empires launched a war of unification, the major factions of the original three Douluo Empires would not intervene to stop it.
"You are all greatly talented."
Xu Jiawei clapped his hands, ambition leaking through his usually gentle eyes. "Prime Minister."
"I am here."
The Prime Minister stepped out from the ranks and bowed slightly.
"I decree that you select several key ministers to draft the direction for the Star Luo Empire's development. No matter what, we must perfect the empire's soul tool system. Everything—absolutely everything—must serve our military might!"
"And also..."
At this point, Xu Jiawei paused slightly. He seemed about to say something more, but swallowed his words.
It wasn't until after the court session concluded that he added a few more instructions. "Prime Minister, from now on, you will allocate the majority of the national treasury's funds to education and the military. While stockpiling armaments for unforeseen needs, you must also build up the Soul Tool Department of the Star Luo Royal Soul Master Academy, modeling it after the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy."
With a serious expression, Xu Jiawei declared, "This is a national policy! I want a concrete plan drawn up."
Without paying any mind to the Prime Minister's utterly speechless expression, he waved his hand dismissively, practically shooing him away.
"Alright, that's all. Hurry up and get to work."
"...As you command."
...
Meanwhile, in the palace of the Dou Ling Empire, the atmosphere was steady and reserved. Emperor Xue Feng sat upright on the dragon throne, his expression stern, with a hint of regret and deep contemplation in his eyes.
"The Sun Moon Empire ultimately couldn't hold out any longer. What a pity. A perfectly good opportunity for development has just slipped away."
Xue Feng frowned slightly, his tone laced with regret.
Below him, Ge Hong stood tall and upright, his expression grave. "Bright Phoenix Douluo" Shui Xiye (Ye Xishui in disguise) stood quietly to the side, her eyes profound; as a Limit Douluo, her thoughts were inscrutable. A host of key officials lined both sides of the hall, awaiting the emperor's decree.
Throughout this war, the Dou Ling Empire's presence had been the lowest. The fact that the war hadn't dragged on had completely shattered their plans. Originally, the Dou Ling Empire's strategy was to continuously develop their national power on the premise of suffering no population or infrastructural losses. They planned to wait until the Sun Moon Empire, the Tian Hun Empire, and the Star Luo Empire had all mutually decimated each other—then the Dou Ling Empire would step in and decide the world in one fell swoop!
What a pity... what a crying shame!
Xue Feng swept his gaze over the assembly and spoke slowly. "Although our three empires have claimed victory in this war, both the Tian Hun Empire and the Star Luo Empire have suffered immense trauma. Their populations have dwindled, and their infrastructure is severely damaged; it will take at least ten or twenty years for them to recover their vitality. Therefore, even though the war ended before Tian Hun and Star Luo could be completely weakened, the next ten years will still be the optimal window for our Dou Ling Empire's rapid development."
"I command you to fully digest the spoils of this war and develop our national power. Ten years from now, we will declare war on the Tian Hun Empire!" Xue Feng's voice was resolute, overflowing with determination.
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's heart skipped a beat. Although they had anticipated that the emperor would have further strategic plans, having such a clear objective and timeline brought a sense of pressure alongside their excitement.
The Prime Minister stepped forward and said, "Rest assured, Your Majesty, we shall spare no effort. Our top priority now is to integrate the resources we are about to extract from the Sun Moon Empire and allocate them rationally across all sectors, promoting the comprehensive development of the empire's economy and military."
"Indeed," another minister chimed in to echo him. "Furthermore, we must strengthen domestic governance to ensure stability. Only with internal stability can we focus our efforts on developing our national power."
"Bright Phoenix Douluo" Shui Xiye nodded slightly and spoke. "Your Majesty is farsighted. Regarding cultivation resources, I will do my utmost to assist the empire in nurturing more powerhouses, making preparations for the future war. Give me ten years, and I will make this empire look entirely new."
Xue Feng nodded in satisfaction, his tone turning exceptionally stern. "Very good. This matter concerns the revival of our empire; there is no room for the slightest negligence. I expect you all to fulfill your duties and cooperate seamlessly."
"Should anyone pay lip service while secretly disobeying—execute them!"
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