"Commanders of the Taotie Legion and the Lie Tian Si Legion, where are you?"
"We are here!"
Meng Tian and Ying Bu stepped forward, immediately kneeling on one knee, looking at Yang Hao with serious expressions.
The Lie Tian Si Legion, led by Ying Bu, was the only one of the seven major legions established by the Great Han that was founded by a single commander.
However, this did not affect the legion's combat power in the slightest!
Li Si looked at the two with a solemn expression and directly stated, "The King's decree!"
"The Taotie Legion and the Lie Tian Si Legion are ordered to garrison Sheng Tian Pass!"
"We obey the order!"
Sheng Tian Pass was located at the junction of the Sheng Yuan Dynasty, the Tian Yuan Dynasty, and the Great Han. It was a critical pass strategically built by Yuwen Kai, who made full use of the terrain.
"Commander of the Taotie Legion, where are you?"
"I am here!"
Meng Tian, clad in armor, still bore traces of blood. It was unclear where he had been engaging in slaughter, as he had rushed to the court without even changing his armor.
Li Si glanced at Meng Tian and then said, "The King's decree!"
"The Taotie Legion is ordered to garrison Sheng Cang Pass!"
"Your subordinate respectfully obeys the King's order!"
Meng Tian rose with a thud, taking the King's decree from Li Si. Sheng Cang Pass was at the junction of the Sheng Yuan Dynasty, the Cang Mu Dynasty, and the Great Han, and was also a project undertaken by Yuwen Kai.
"Where is the Kui Niu Legion?"
"We are here!"
Qi Jiguang stepped forward. Although Qi Jiguang had emerged early and his cultivation level had once fallen behind, after experiencing battlefield combat and months of secluded cultivation, and with the help of elixirs, he had now broken through to the Tong Tian realm!
"The King's decree!"
"The Kui Niu Legion is ordered to garrison Qing Cang Pass!"
Qing Cang Pass was at the junction of the former Qing Cang Dynasty, the Cang Mu Dynasty, and the Great Han. A military fortress had also been constructed there!
After Li Si finished reading the King's decree, he bowed to Yang Hao and then retreated.
Yang Hao looked at the civil and military officials and said in a heavy tone, "The seal will break in one month's time. All generals must guard the borders and intercept all the ancient wilderness armies outside our gates!"
"We respectfully obey the King's order!!"
The generals immediately shouted in unison!
"Li Si, you will lead the various departments and ensure the provision of grain, elixirs, and other resources for our army!"
"Yes!"
"Adjourn the court!!"
Yang Hao immediately stood up. The Southwest Region was about to face turmoil, and this last month would be the final period of peace for this land!
In the Human Emperor's Hall, Elder Sheng, holding the command of the Ten Elders, opened the Human Emperor's Codex, summoning the Tian Yue Dynasty, Cang Mu Dynasty, Bei Han Dynasty, Tian Yuan Dynasty, and Sheng Yuan Dynasty.
On that day, the five great dynasties once again assembled a million-strong army and marched to the northern border of the Tian Yue Dynasty.
As time rapidly passed, the Wei Yang Dynasty and the Great Yan Dynasty also mobilized their armies, fully guarding their borders. From the northwesternmost Great Han territory in the Southwest Region all the way to the southeasternmost Great Yan Dynasty territory, a border spanning billions of miles was guarded by vast armies!
...
One month passed quietly.
In late November of the second year of Great Han, streams of red blood mist once again erupted from the seal, plunging the entire Southwest Region into silence. The top-tier forces' armies were stationed at the border between the human lands and the ancient wilderness!
"Boom!!"
Six months passed quietly. The seal did not break as expected. Instead, the red mist continued for several days. It was not until December 1st of the second year of Great Han that a thunderous roar sounded, and a torrential rain of blood fell across the entire Southwest Region.
This blood rain seemed to be the horn announcing the breaking of the seal. The next day, the void of the seal gradually dissipated.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
As the void began to dissipate, the vast border of the Southwest Region, spanning billions of miles, was filled with thunderous roars, as if long-suppressed rage was being released at this moment.
"Hoo!"
"Hoo!"
"Hoo!"
On the northern border of the Great Han, the Qilin Legion and the Azure Dragon Legion, with their various commanders spread out, suppressed the endless border. The armies let out shouts, shattering the towering roars.
Chen Tang, Cen Peng, Qin Qiong, Yu Chi Gong, and Cheng Yao Jin, each leading a hundred thousand troops, arrayed themselves at the front, gazing at the dissolving seal in the void.
Compared to the Great Han, the Human Emperor's Hall and the various dynasties were more tense, their faces filled with apprehension. They had clashed with the ancient wilderness too many times, each encounter costing lives and barely getting through those dark three months.
It felt like an eternity.
"Gurgle gurgle~~"
Streams of blood essence, as if liquid, began to flow from the gray void, and the unique stench of monstrous beasts permeated the air.
The void seal began to thin, like a thin curtain of sand, separating the human lands from the ancient wilderness.
Everyone looked through the void seal and saw, on the other side, an endless expanse of figures. Unlike the human army, that side was chaotic, with some figures towering over a dozen zhang and others as short as three or four zhang.
"Crackling!!"
Thunder rumbled, and heavy rain once again poured down across the Southwest Region. Dark clouds obscured the sun, and the clouds churned.
"Up!"
At the northern border of the Great Han, Chen Tang, Cen Peng, Qin Qiong, Yu Chi Gong, and Cheng Yao Jin immediately raised their army banners. Commands were issued, and the soldiers nocked their arrows, their primal energy gathering towards the arrowheads!
"Squeak~~"
"Crack!"
Behind the army, catapults were pushed forward once more. Great Han soldiers lifted massive balls of flaming iron and placed them on the catapults.
...
In an unknown void, the Imperial Dynasty palace, which had disappeared from the Southwest Region, reappeared. Within the Blood Refining Cave, the long-submerged Imperial Corpse suddenly erupted in flames. its cold, bone-white mouth slightly parted, and streams of black, turbid air spewed out!
"The seal is broken!"
"I..."
Before he could finish speaking, the layers of flames that had ignited disappeared again. Behind the Imperial Corpse, a massive fleshy ball of blood, resembling a pulsating heart, appeared. The palace flickered for less than a few breaths before disappearing again!!
...
"Roar roar roar!!"
Great roars of excitement filled the air as the receding void slowly thinned. Along the thousand-mile border, the human armies could now clearly see the appearance of the monstrous beast army!
At the northern border of the Great Han, the various commanders looked up and found that their appearance was remarkably similar to that of Xi Thirteen when he had transformed into human form. They had red skin, extremely thick, appearing as if they were wearing blood-red armor, and layers of flames burned on their bodies.
These fifty thousand troops were the vanguard of the Primordial Desolate Domain – the Blazing Flame Rhinos – whom Xi Thirteen had fully described after returning to Chang'an with Wang Yue!
The ancient wilderness was vast, equivalent to four times the area of the human lands in the Southwest Region!
According to Xi Thirteen's account, over a million years ago, the entire ancient wilderness was occupied by four supreme powerhouses. Each of the four supreme powerhouses controlled a quarter of the ancient wilderness's land.
They became the rulers of their respective territories!
All the monstrous beasts submitted to the feet of the four overlords and were collectively revered by the beasts of the ancient wilderness as the "Four Desolate Lords!"