PFC Chapter 6989 So that’s it
Chapter 6989 So that’s it
Chapter 6989 So that’s it
While the eliminated veterans were making a ruckus in the Myriad Gods Palace, the Small World Martial Arts Competition continued. However, by this time, there were very few Xiongnu elites still alive. In fact, it should be said that only Helian Tuomiao remained among the Xiongnu elites at the sixth level or above.
"Although I don't know how many Xiongnu elites with a level six or higher forging are left, I think it's time for you to die." Zhao Zhen gripped Lan Yu's neck with his right hand, his expression utterly calm.
From encountering the orchid fish to capturing it, Zhao Zhen used eleven moves in total. There was no other way; his pure strength had reached a terrifying level, rendering techniques meaningless.
With his power fully unleashed, Zhao Zhen completely overwhelmed all his opponents in this small world in terms of strength. Even Jiang Guang, the second-stage Heavenly Demon, and Hasgard in his berserk form, Zhao Zhen still possessed an absolute advantage in terms of power.
As for the excessively wild power that might cause damage to oneself, what good is beginner-level super-speed regeneration?
What's this talk about forces acting in unison? If I unleash a punch and my bones can't withstand it, doesn't that also mean my opponent's bones can't withstand it? After all, the punch I can unleash is an extreme force that absolutely exceeds my opponent's limits.
Once I figured this out, I immediately stopped obsessing over the utterly foolish question of whether my body could handle such wild power!
I, Zhao Zhen, cannot withstand such wild power, and my opponent certainly cannot either. Since that's the case, forget about thinking about it, let's just blast him!
Lan Yu fell into Zhao Zhen's hands just like that. He never expected that Zhao Zhen would break nine of his ribs with just one strike. And that was only because Lan Yu was a top-level sixth-level fusion type in terms of quality. Otherwise, this strike would have been enough to kill the opponent instantly!
"It really is a monster." Lan Yu spat out blood, his face filled with despair. He had no hope of escaping. He had already suffered multiple fractures from the previous fight, and when Zhao Zhen grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up, he was unable to control his body and was on the verge of death.
"Your Xiongnu have declined quite a bit. Am I considered a monster now?" Zhao Zhen angrily punched Lan Yu, having vented most of his pent-up anger. He was no longer as violent as before, and even spoke to the dying Lan Yu with a touch of peace.
“Among us, only Tien and Herlian Tomm might be able to defeat you. The others are probably no match for you. How could someone who has cultivated Qi to the point of becoming a Qi master have such power?” Lan Yu said in despair. He had advanced to the point of leaving his body with internal energy, which allowed him to withstand seven more moves before most of his bones were broken.
"Cough cough, it's only possible to defeat him..." Lan Yu was utterly desperate. His spirit and energy had been shattered by Zhao Zhen's three punches. Even his will to maintain himself in the extremely cruel environment of the inner world had completely collapsed.
"You can surrender," Zhao Zhen said calmly to Lan Yu. The Xiongnu had the right to submit.
"Kill me," Lan Yu said after a moment of silence. "Death is inevitable, why be humiliated? Just kill me."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Zhen quietly watched Lan Yu, who closed her eyes and awaited death. Zhao Zhen then punched Lan Yu, causing her head to explode like a watermelon. Afterward, Zhao Zhen tossed Lan Yu's remains aside.
"Didn't any of the Xiongnu surrender?" Chen Xi asked the people around him with some doubt. Everyone around him was stunned for a moment, then nodded. Not a single one had surrendered.
"Those who wanted to surrender have already surrendered. From the founding of the nation until now, we have never said that the Xiongnu people are not allowed to surrender, but those who were willing to surrender have already surrendered," Liu Tong said calmly.
Conversely, those who haven't surrendered yet are die-hards!
The Han dynasty was actually quite good to the Xiongnu. As long as they were willing to surrender, they were willing to give them important positions. Even someone like Jin Midi, who was born into the Xiongnu Xiutu King family, could become a regent if he was truly willing to surrender and had sufficient ability.
Some entire tribes surrendered, including the Southern Xiongnu who were under the protection of the Han Dynasty.
Overall, the Han dynasty was quite lenient with the Xiongnu who were willing to surrender. However, the problem was that the Xiongnu, who were still fighting the Han dynasty head-on, were definitely die-hards and would never be willing to surrender.
At least in Liu Tong's understanding, that's how it is—after four hundred years of selection, those who were willing to surrender had long since returned to the Han Dynasty, and those who remained were all unwilling to surrender from the bottom of their hearts, pure die-hards, who needed to be dealt with severely.
"That's pretty much it. It's better if none of them surrender. If they do surrender, we'll have to give them some kind of job or something." Liu Bei said with a displeased look. Even after all these years, he still has some of the rebellious side.
For example, Liu Bei was relatively stingy when it came to assigning official positions and titles to the surrendered Kushan generals and officers. Although he would treat them all equally after their surrender, he simply couldn't bring himself to give them high positions!
In Liu Bei's words, many soldiers have followed me for over twenty years, risking their lives and never missing a single battle, and now they only have a seventh or eighth rank of nobility. But those who defected to me only got a rank of Grand Master? Damn it, isn't it like following me through life and death is less valuable than engaging in speculation?
Therefore, Liu Bei would carefully examine the generals and officers who came to join him, and then conduct a thorough review of their titles and official positions before issuing them.
Unfortunately, most ordinary veterans, even in this era of maximum war benefits and having participated in every major battle, find it difficult to break through to the seventh rank of nobility.
Therefore, Liu Bei was always dissatisfied with the practice of giving a thousand gold pieces to buy horse bones to those who surrendered from Kushan. Why should these people, who were of average ability and strength and had even rebelled against him before, be given a ninth-rank title now that they have surrendered?
A ninth-rank noble title isn't something you can just give away like cabbage. Special treatment for prisoners of war? Why should they?
Therefore, none of the Xiongnu surrendered; they were all die-hards. This only made Liu Bei secretly pleased. He didn't need to reward these guys, and he could even pave the way for his own brothers' promotions.
To be honest, Liu Bei really wanted to give all the veterans who followed him a ninth-rank noble title. But things were different now. In the past, noble titles were just honors, and he could give them out arbitrarily. But now, noble titles were linked to status, salary, residence, and so on. Giving them out arbitrarily would cause big trouble. So Liu Bei could only give them to these people within a reasonable range.
For example, Sun Er and Wei Shuang have already locked onto the high-ranking Marquis of Guannei, the young lady of the Zhang family of Qinghe. Zhang Yingying is currently staring blankly at the purple tribute silk that the authorities have given her. This thing is the material that the authorities gave to Sun Er's wife so that she could take his measurements and make his formal attire for the grand court assembly.
After all, the state wouldn't expect veterans like Sun Er and Wei Shuang, who had risen through the ranks to become Marquises within the Passes, to have tribute-grade silk to prepare a set of marquis robes for them. The state could only provide them directly when they were promoted.
Do you even know what efficiency means? The Right Wise King died a second ago, and the seal was stamped on the blank edict the next second. Then the Grand General, the Grand Commandant, and others approved and filed it on the spot, and it was archived that same day! That's what you call respect for the Xiongnu!
Well, in Liu Bei's eyes, the Xiongnu who were killed on the spot deserved respect, but the Xiongnu who survived and surrendered did not deserve respect at all.
To put it simply, if Tien had chosen to surrender, given the knowledge he possessed, the Han Dynasty would have had to grant him the rank of Marquis to be worthy of his status.
Fortunately, Tien did not surrender, which allowed the Han Dynasty to promote two people to the rank of Marquis within the Passes, a cause for celebration.
"Has it already been sent?" Xin Xianying returned to the outside of the small world to observe, and Liu Tong asked without turning his head.
“Madam Zhang and Madam Guo are both in the side hall. I have already instructed Zhan Shi to send over all the silk, crowns, white jade, and the twelve ornaments used by the ladies,” Xin Xianying replied with a bow.
To be honest, this was the fastest way Xin Xianying had ever seen to be granted a title in her life. She was even somewhat envious of Zhang Yingying and Guo Yuan, who received the complete set of gifts. They had suddenly turned their lives around. Sure enough, she would have to work hard to cultivate her husband next!
Although the title of Marquis of Guannei was jokingly referred to as a monkey show, it was still a human rights card. With this, one could truly be considered a superior person in the Han Dynasty.
Zhang Yingying and Guo Yuan were both legitimate daughters from prominent families. Whether it was the Zhang family of Qinghe or the Guo family of Taiyuan, they were at least from families with generations of high-ranking officials. Even if they didn't understand what was going on when they first received this set of items, once they opened it and took a look, they knew that this was the kind of set that only the matriarch of their maternal family was entitled to use.
So much so that the two of them felt like they hadn't done anything, they had just come here to watch their husbands beat up other people, and in the blink of an eye, they had become the wives of marquises!
Something I never even dreamed of growing up suddenly happened to me. It turns out that being born into a good family is only one aspect; marrying well can change your destiny!
Chen Xi glanced at the chattering scene in the side hall out of the corner of his eye, then focused his gaze on the few remaining Xiongnu people. To be honest, Chen Xi found it very strange that the Xiongnu were like iron-blooded warriors, preferring death to surrender, which was really too outrageous.
It's absurd that even those fanatical believers from the south, who were fearless of death and roared to return to Brahma, had hundreds of thousands captured by the Han Dynasty. Yet, not a single Xiongnu surrendered!
"Can you probe Qiu Linnian's memories? I feel something's not right," Chen Xi transmitted to Guan Yu. Guan Yu shook his head. Qiu Linnian's normal will had truly broken through its limits, so trying to retrieve memories from such a thing was simply too difficult.
"Is it possible to break through limits without willpower?" Chen Xi asked.
"Yes, but I can't guarantee perfect fluency," Guan Yu replied directly.
"If you want to ask me something, just let me ask you one or two questions. Why do you need to use this memory retrieval method? What are you thinking?" Zhou Yu, who was watching the commotion from the side, noticed Chen Xi's strange behavior and asked.
"You were able to find out?" Chen Xi asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Is there anything I can't get out of them?" Zhou Yu said with a sneer. It wasn't that Zhou Yu was bragging; his interrogation skills were arguably the best in the world. As long as his side could capture the enemy, he would definitely be able to pry information out of them, no matter how strong the enemy was or how firm their beliefs were. At the very least, getting the answers to one or two questions was a piece of cake.
"Then you give it a try." Chen Xi thought for a moment and felt that Zhou Yu was still somewhat useful, so he signaled Zhao Yun to restrain Qiu Linnian and then let Zhou Yu try. The reason for restraining Qiu Linnian was mainly because Zhou Yu was too weak, and Chen Xi was worried that Qiu Linnian, who suddenly woke up, would beat Zhou Yu to death on the spot.
After all, even a mere veteran with six levels of forging could kill Zhou Yu, so it would be no problem for someone as tough as Qiu Linnian to kill Zhou Yu on the spot.
"Speaking of which, should I move you to another place? Zichuan is kind-hearted and can't stand bloodshed and brutality," Liu Bei suddenly said with a hint of teasing.
"Lord Xuande, what you've said leaves me speechless." Chen Xi looked at Liu Bei with a hint of exasperation; Liu Bei could be a bit eccentric at times.
"No need." Zhou Yu waved his hand, then directly placed his hand on Qiu Linnian's head, activating his mental talent to its limit, instantly turning Qiu Linnian into an idiot, so that he could answer whatever questions were asked.
It was Zhou Yu's unparalleled interrogation technique. From the moment his spiritual talent was awakened, Zhou Yu used this method to interrogate people, and he was always successful.
The only drawback is that it's too direct, which means that for prisoners who are strong and intelligent, this way of questioning will make them realize the truth after only one or two questions.
After all, the "idiot aura" talent isn't something that can be used indefinitely.
"Alright, tell me what you want to know, and I'll ask. But whether this guy's willpower has broken through limits or his internal energy has left his body, his resistance is relatively strong. I estimate that I can only guarantee the answers to the first two questions. Now you can consider me his father." Zhou Yu placed his hand on Qiu Linnian's shoulder, and after the aura of idiocy completely eroded Qiu Linnian, he said to Chen Xi and the others.
Everyone present was speechless upon seeing this scene. What kind of operation was this? How could it be done like this? No wonder Zhou Yu always managed to leak such outrageous information. So this is how it was done. I knew it! There are some things you shouldn't know!
Actually, none of that matters. If it were a normal soldier, Zhou Yu's approach could directly dredge up the soldier's childhood memories of playing in the mud. Only Qiu Linnian, who has internal energy outside his body and thus considerable resistance, would quickly realize that he was being interfered with after letting the secret slip. Otherwise, Zhou Yu would have agreed to more than just one or two questions.
"Ask them where their tribe is located." After a brief discussion, the group suggested that Zhou Yu try asking. This question was actually to determine whether the Xiongnu existed on a large scale in the inner world and whether they could subsequently pursue and attack the Xiongnu in the inner world.
“Okay.” Zhou Yu nodded, then asked Qiu Linnian directly.
"Our tribe is located in the central sea area on the inner side of the world, and we have about 400,000 people." Qiu Linnian told everyone the answer that the Han Dynasty wanted, looking rather silly.
Upon hearing this answer, the group's expressions quickly darkened. This was a force of 400,000 Xiongnu, which, even at the height of the Xiongnu's power, would have been considered one of the most elite tribes.
"What else do you want to ask?" Zhou Yu asked, looking at everyone.
"Ask him how the Xiongnu live in the inner part of the world," Liu Bei asked after thinking for a moment. "We have sent people in there before, and in terms of danger, it is not low. It is not easy for the Xiongnu to live there. If we understand this, we can go in and hunt them down."
“Living in the inner world requires a belief that anchors you. Without this belief, it’s easy to lose yourself in the environment of the inner world and become a walking corpse.” Qiu Linnian began to struggle as he spoke. His subconscious had already sensed something was wrong, but his respect for his father still made him answer mindlessly.
"Quick, quick, there's still half a question to ask." Zhou Yu quickly increased his output, trying his best to stabilize Qiu Linnian's understanding of his biological father, and then asked Chen Xi.
"Are the Xiongnu the Xiahou clan?" Chen Xi thought for a moment and felt it was necessary to confirm. This matter concerned how Chen Xi should deal with the Xiongnu in the future. If they were the Xiahou clan, then after subduing them, he could absorb them. If not, it would be better to kill them out of such a deep hatred.
"We are descendants of the Xiahou clan, protected by the ruins of the Great Xia..." Qiu Linnian said with a hint of pride. Although they always called themselves Xiahou clan, they had only followed the crowd in the past. But after entering the small world, collecting some of the ruins of the Great Xia, and confirming their origins, Qiu Linnian was quite proud.
After all, this is the prevailing custom in the Central Plains, and the Xiongnu and the Han Dynasty had similar views on this matter. Therefore, after realizing that their ancestors were actually very powerful, the Xiongnu people became somewhat arrogant after finding their roots. So even Zhou Yu could hear the arrogance in Qiu Lin's words.
Before he could finish speaking, Qiu Linnian had already broken free from the influence of intelligence. After all, Zhou Yu's methods were too brutal. Well, only by pressing the other person's head down could he forcefully interfere to this extent. In any other way, how could he treat the other person like a dog?
"You!" Qiu Linnian's hands and feet turned ice cold. After realizing what had happened, he immediately started cursing at the members of the Han Dynasty. Fortunately, Zhao Yun was quick-witted and restrained Qiu Linnian before he could open his mouth.
"Alright, at least several hundred thousand Xiongnu are indeed in the inner world. They are barely managing to solve their internal problems thanks to the relics of the Xia Dynasty and their unwavering will." Liu Bei summarized briefly. "Whether or not to send troops to the inner world will be discussed after the court meeting."
"So the reason they won't surrender is because of the global environment, making them use our Han Dynasty as an anchor, right?" Chen Xi said with a hint of weariness. "I knew it! The Xiongnu are intelligent beings too; they can't all be as hard as steel, unafraid of death!"
"Alright, this is even more troublesome. The Xiongnu people on the inner side of the world can basically be assumed to be the kind who are fearless and willing to fight the Han Dynasty to the end." Liu Tong's face was cold, and when he crossed his arms and raised his arms, the cold light in his eyes was not concealed at all.
"It is indeed very troublesome." Chen Xi also had a headache. They were completely fearless and wanted to fight the Han Dynasty to the death. This was very difficult to deal with. However, when he thought about it carefully, the Han Dynasty's weapons and equipment had been upgraded to this level. It seemed that they did not care much about the other party wanting to fight to the death with them.
"Speaking of which, the earlier the Xiongnu people surrendered, the more they joined the Han Dynasty. How come the later the period, the more die-hard Xiongnu people there were, and even this kind of subtle influence appeared, to ensure that they would fight the Han Dynasty to the last drop of blood?" Fa Zheng said with a bit of a strange feeling.
During Emperor Wu's reign, waves of Xiongnu surrendered to the Han court. Even when Huo Qubing fought the decisive battle in Mobei, many of his elite troops came from the Xiongnu. But after the Xiongnu were defeated, the number of Xiongnu surrendering became increasingly smaller.
"It's probably because the living conditions of the Xiongnu became more and more difficult as time went on, and the old Xiongnu tried to shift the blame to the Han Dynasty," Jia Xu said with some speculation. "After all, in the early days it was just a matter of morality. For ordinary people, changing their identity didn't affect their survival. But later, for the Xiongnu, it really became a matter of life and death. With each generation of brainwashing, it's normal that fewer and fewer people surrendered."
"Alright, now that we have a general understanding of the situation with the Xiongnu, let's continue watching the Grand Martial Arts Tournament. The third phase is about to end, and the last few elite Xiongnu forces are gradually being wiped out." Chen Xi said, pointing to the situation in the small world. The Xiongnu have been basically wiped out, and only Helian Tuomiao remains among those who have reached the sixth level of fusion.
"This is the only one left, right?" Chen Xi looked at Helian Tuomiao, who had killed several veterans who were blocking his way, and then looked at the direction the other party was heading. In the end, he decided that there was no need to notify him.
"Why does it seem like Wu Xi arrived at Zhang Yong's place even earlier than Helian Tuomiao?" Liu Bei asked, frowning. He had been ignoring Helian Tuomiao, the young Xiongnu king, to give Wu Xi and Zhang Yong a chance, but what's going on now? Why is Wu Xi meeting Zhang Yong first?
“Helian Tuomiao encountered Han soldiers several times on the road. Although he won each battle, he wasted a lot of time. Wu Xi, on the other hand, kept advancing and only encountered the Xiongnu once, and their strength was not very strong. So now Wu Xi has arrived first.” Zhao Shuang, who had been observing, told Liu Bei what he had seen earlier.
"Should we inform Zhang Yong and Wu Xi?" Hua Xiong asked with a hint of helplessness.
"Forget it, there's only Helian Tuomiao left, so there's no need for this. Let's just wait and see," Chen Xi said after thinking for a moment. It's not like before when the Xiongnu were rampaging through the small world. Now the Xiongnu have been wiped out, leaving only Helian Tuomiao as the sole survivor. There's really no need to do this.
"Alright then." Hua Xiong glanced at Wu Xi, who had completely regained his youth and could sense Zhang Yong in the distance, striding towards him. To be honest, even though Wu Xi had regained his youth, rushing over there would be practically suicide.
"Whoosh." Wu Xi pushed aside the bushes, then took two steps forward. Looking at Zhang Yong, who was still sitting on the rock with his eyes closed, Wu Xi's face was somewhat ferocious.
Those who have votes, please cast them! It's almost the end of the month, and I feel like the author's career is going to fail.
(End of this chapter)