"I'm very curious. I enforced such a thorough blockade on war intelligence, yet why did you still receive battle reports from the front lines? To evacuate sixty thousand Imperial Guards along with your family and descendants would require five to seven days. It seems you received intelligence on the battle situation immediately after I broke your main force. In that battle, I clearly didn't let a single person escape, not even a flying snow eagle."
"Indeed, no one from my tribe's warriors sent back any intelligence. However, while my tribe didn't, your Empire did."
The King of the Northern Region tossed an open bamboo tube to Lin, who didn't care at all, not worried that the King of the Northern Region would take advantage of her distraction to launch a surprise attack.
Lin took out a plain white cloth strip from the bamboo tube, covered in small writing.
It was a military report Lin had written to the Empire, a top-secret Imperial military report that had fallen into enemy hands at the first possible moment.
"It's infighting again, a boring drama."
Lin said with a disdainful smile, "This must have been sent by people from the Western Kingdom.
I don't believe the Northern Region people have the capability to dispatch spies within the Empire."
"Indeed."
Even though his words were full of mockery towards the intelligence of the Northern Region people, the King of the Northern Region did not refute him.
After all, facts were facts, and refuting them would only bring humiliation and wouldn't add to the intelligence of the Northern Region people.
"But your reaction has somewhat impressed me.
According to the Northern Region people's way of thinking, shouldn't you gather all your strength to fight me to the death to defend the dignity of your Northern Region warriors?
But you decisively chose to retreat.
In the eyes of your people, this should be considered a complete loss of face for the Northern Region people."
"That's right, this act of weakness and compromise towards the Empire indeed made the Northern Region warriors lose face."
"Then it's even stranger.
Why didn't you, as the King, retreat with them?
With you, the strongest person in the Northern Region, providing protection, shouldn't your people, who are the last embers of the Northern Region, be much safer?
You clearly decided to endure humiliation and preserve the Northern Region's bloodline, so why not bide your time, grow stronger, and then seize the opportunity to counterattack?
Why stay here and wait for death?"
The King of the Northern Region took a deep breath of the cold air in the great hall, then said heavily, "If I don't provide my head as a guarantee, how can you report to the Emperor of the Empire?"
"Hmm!"
Lin's perception of the Northern Region people had to change a little because of this King of the Northern Region; at least this King of the Northern Region was quite intelligent.
If Lin didn't return to the capital with the head of the King of the Northern Region, then the claim of pacifying the Northern Region would not be convincing.
In the army, prestige is the most important thing, and any imperfect victory would have a negative impact on Lin's future.
Lin, a perfectionist who strives to do everything perfectly, could not tolerate this.
If the King of the Northern Region had retreated with his forces into the Ice Circle (Death Forbidden Zone), then Lin would certainly have led her army in pursuit.
Even if it meant the Seventh Expeditionary Force suffered losses, she would have to obtain the head of the King of the Northern Region to be satisfied.
And if that were the case, the Northern Region forces in the Ice Circle (Death Forbidden Zone) were already facing certain death; once caught by the Seventh Expeditionary Force, they would face complete annihilation.
But now, with the King of the Northern Region still here, is it still necessary for Lin to risk heavy casualties among her soldiers to rush into the Ice Circle (Death Forbidden Zone) and pursue a force that is nine times out of ten already annihilated inside?
After all, the soldiers of the Seventh Expeditionary Force were also Lin's direct subordinates, almost her private army, and her capital for conquering the four directions.
Suffering heavy losses in the first expedition would also be extremely disadvantageous.
Therefore, Lin no longer had a reason to risk leading her people into the Ice Circle (Death Forbidden Zone).
The King of the Northern Region's goal was to use his own head to preserve the last embers of the Northern Region, giving them a slim chance of survival.
Everything for the continuation of the race.
This was the thought pattern of the Northern Region people; compared to the complex thoughts of the Imperial people, the Northern Region people's ideas were closer to the essence of animals.
"So, having defeated the strongest person in the entire Northern Region, what will you choose now?"
Facing the calm inquiry of the King of the Northern Region, the value of the situation was clear, but this made Lin unhappy.
If Lin were to make a capricious decision, ordering the Seventh Expeditionary Force to storm the Ice Circle (Death Forbidden Zone) just to prevent the King of the Northern Region from getting his way, it would seem too childish.
Moreover, this guy doesn't seem to intend to surrender without a fight.
"You seem to have a strong attachment to the weapon in your hand."
"Of course, this is crafted from my most prized trophy.
I will fight to the death with it until the very last moment."
"A bone spear made from the bones of a Super Danger Beast, huh...
If that's the case, you should also be an opponent worth me taking a little more seriously."
As he spoke, a faint, excited smile appeared on Lin's slightly smiling face.
Her left thumb pressed against the tsuba of the yatsufusa in her hand, pushing the blade slightly out of the scabbard, and she said, "In that case, I'll give you another goal to strive for.
If you can force me to use the ability of my Imperial Armament to kill you, then I will return to the capital with your head as you wish.
Conversely, if you can't even force me to use the ability of my Imperial Armament, then you have no right to negotiate with me, and I will act according to my own will."
Lin did not seek the King of the Northern Region's agreement, and the King of the Northern Region did not speak but chose to acquiesce.
After all, Lin was ultimately the one with the overwhelming advantage; the weaker party cannot refuse the stronger party's proposal, as even this gamble was based on the premise of his head falling.
Even whether to abide by the outcome of the gamble after the goal was achieved was entirely in Lin's hands, but whether he gambled or not, he had to fight Lin, so refusing or not made no sense...
The King of the Northern Region lowered his upper body and the tip of his spear together, like a snow leopard poised to pounce, radiating a murderous aura.
With profound emptiness, held back and not unleashed, just from the posture of this single movement, it was evident that the King of the Northern Region's combat martial arts were ten times stronger than the Northern Region Grand Commander who had previously died by her Imperial Armament.
An opponent who emphasizes both skill and strength; Lin really hadn't encountered such an enemy in a long time.
The fact that he could hunt a Super Danger Beast alone and fashion a weapon from the bones of his prey showed how strong he was.
Compared to the King of the Northern Region's poised, ready-to-strike dueling stance, Lin was completely relaxed and casual, still standing there with both hands hanging down, gripping the yatsufusa.
For a moment, neither side moved.
At this moment, the King of the Northern Region was waiting, just waiting for any subtle movement from Lin that would create an opening or flaw.
Like a thousand-pound bow drawn and ready, the bone spear would instantly pierce the opponent's vital point.
At this moment, Lin, standing casually, seemed to unintentionally raise the sword in her hand, and in this unwitting instant, the King of the Northern Region's bone spear moved like thunder!
Like a fierce lightning bolt, it instantly crossed the distance of over two hundred steps between them, striking directly at Lin's throat.
However, what sounded at this moment was a clang of metal.
The yatsufusa scabbard, which Lin seemed to have raised unconsciously, happened to block the path of the bone spear's attack, striking the orichalcum-forged scabbard.
The enemy had already moved, and Lin naturally would not be a fraction slower than her opponent.
At the same time as the King of the Northern Region's narrow bone spear struck, the yatsufusa, at the moment of contact, let out a clear clang, and a dazzling light completely flew out from the scabbard, coming from behind and surpassing, with the power and speed generated by the swift draw of an Iaijutsu strike, this sword path, like splitting a mountain, roared forth—
"Clang—!"
The cold, bright blade, carrying an unparalleled sword light capable of splitting space itself, pressed directly towards the large head of the King of the Northern Region!
The battle, once ignited, could no longer be restrained!
The battle instantly became white-hot.
The King of the Northern Region, with his body hunched, wielded his spear as if it carried layers of shadows, like a fierce tiger descending a mountain, a snow wolf running swiftly, the roaring, ferocious shadows of Danger Beasts overlapping beneath his spear, like a thousand-mile avalanche, a tide of ten thousand beasts, unstoppable.
Each spear thrust stirred the air, producing a continuous, broken whistling sound.
Meanwhile, Lin, treading with intricate and subtle footwork, single-handedly wielded the yatsufusa in her right hand, unleashing sword edges unimaginable to humans, like a raging storm, lightning and thunder.
Every slash was ethereal, as if striking rocks on the coast, surging and flowing.
The sound of sword and spear clashing was like the clash of a thousand armies, countless metallic roars of swords colliding continuously.
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