In the Central Five States, they have always been regarded as something in the bag by the four great dynasties. At the establishment’s beginnings, everyone coveted the Central Five States.
Of course, given the vastness of the Central Five States, the four great dynasties could not maintain the previous tacit agreement to divide the territory evenly.
Only the powerful dynasties could acquire the land of the Central Five States and continue to grow stronger.
Securing the Central Five States meant possessing a great advantage; in the subsequent struggles, it translated to the highest probability of success. So, at this time, all four dynasties were preparing to make their move.
According to Zhu Xiao’s information, each dynasty had dispatched no fewer than five hundred thousand troops.
That is to say, at least two million troops were preparing to enter the Central Five States for the battle. The Central Five States were vast, but still appeared somewhat small given the two million soldiers.
Even in its heyday, the Great Zhou Dynasty had no more than one and a half million troops, maintaining a basic balance and suppressing the world.
And now, two million troops were involved merely for the struggle over the Central Five States.
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“What an exhausting and militaristic spectacle!”
In this world, the territories of an empire are vast, and the population is large.
However, after years of war and catastrophe, the population has declined significantly. Being able to muster two million troops for battle definitely means drawing the majority of available hands, and many of the Martial Artist forces within the dynasties cannot escape either, as they are mandatorily required to provide personnel.
Then there are the ordinary citizens.
One could only say how could the dynasty’s power possibly engage in a losing trade? With so much food dispensed and so many Martial Artists dispatched, how could they not recoup some interest?
Ordinary people could also be formed into military formations. Under the restraint of the top Great Grandmasters, they could play a significant role. Once a batch of territories was conquered, it would be the real moment to break the balance.
However, due to the previous catastrophes, there was not much resistance from the citizens within the dynasty. It was not because they were willing, but there was very little rebellion.
Thus, from the east, south, west, and north, a total of two million troops sharpened their blades, all set to turn the Central Five States into a meat grinder.
The forces of the Central Five States were under the greatest pressure. They knew that what followed was either departing from the Central Five States and choosing a dynasty — which might result in being assigned back to the Central Five States, thereby securing the safety of most of their clan members, but at the cost of losing most of their foundation since gaining benefits in a new place is unlikely.
Or they would be like a rootless duckweed, remaining in the Central Five States — a move that could likely be overturned by the tides, reducing whole clans to dust, yet it also held the possibility of preserving and even furthering their foundation.
Two options, and for the vast majority of the Central Five States’ forces, these were the inevitable choices to make unless you were an individual who didn’t care about your family; there was no third option.
Of course, there were two forces that were exceptions to this.
One was naturally Yuelai Inn of Chi State. As a top fighter, Zhu Xiao had no fear of these conflicts. The four great dynasties would not provoke her before achieving success, so she could basically disregard it.
The other was the Taiping Sect of Huangtian. His sect had already taken shape with its high-ranking officials in place. They knew that if controlled by a dynasty, everything would go back to square one, so they had long been prepared to battle the dynasties’ troops.
The four great dynasties had two million troops, while their sect now also had one million followers.
Of course, many were aware that their strength was far inferior to that of the dynasties’ armies, which made the continued existence of the Taiping Sect a testament to their firm convictions.
The world Huangtian depicted was simply too tempting!
But—
“Sect Hierarch, the forces of the four great dynasties are very strong; we’re not their match!”
“Yes, Sect Hierarch, with two million troops from the four great dynasties, and at least three hundred thousand Martial Artists, these fighters are not something we can contend with. Should we not lie low for a while, develop in secret?”
They were unwilling to give up but knew that a head-on confrontation would certainly not yield any favorable outcomes.
Huangtian looked at everyone but said nothing.
Three hundred thousand Martial Artists, indeed a terrifying number.
They had mobilized nearly all the Martial Artists they could, enough to crush anything in their way.
If you did not have equivalent strength, there was no point in resisting.
So lying low seemed the best option since they had not yet attracted serious attention; just biding time might not mean they would have no opportunity.
After a long while, Huangtian spoke.
“Lying low is not an option. Once we go into hiding, we will never have the chance to rise again. Do you think the four dynasties’ power will regress?” he asked without waiting for an answer. “No, they will only grow stronger. As time drags on, our chances will only diminish.”
Huangtian’s perception was clear; he had observed the development of the four great dynasties over the years. Though each operation resulted in significant losses, they grew stronger after each one.
Take for instance, Spirit Sword Valley and Heavenly Saber City, that is, the Wu Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty. Both forces previously attacked Shuzhou, losing a large number of men. But now?
They were stronger than before!
Therefore, lying low was futile.
“What should we do, Sect Hierarch?”
Among the high ranks of Taiping Sect were commoners as well as Martial Artists, all of whom held great trust in Huangtian. Although Huangtian appeared merely as a Grandmaster Level Martial Artist in his external demeanor, they all knew he was indeed a top fighter.
Huangtian didn’t beat around the bush but directly pointed at one of the senior officials, a common man. In the Taiping Sect, one didn’t need to possess ultimate power to become a senior official.