Double penetration: This Three Kingdoms has dragon energy

Chapter 120 The Nine Provinces Barrier, Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han, Ambition for Immortality
Faced with such a sensible and understanding head of the Tian family, Ji Qiu naturally chose to forgive him.

After all, the Tian family's private army had been wiped out, and their land, people, and wealth were about to be confiscated.

The Tian family of Qi Commandery is about to become a toothless tiger, unable to stir up any more trouble.

Therefore, it seems that he doesn't need to completely eliminate the other party.

Of course, another important reason for not completely eliminating the other party is that the other party still has value to him.

For Ji Qiu, everyone in the world of Dragon Qi Three Kingdoms is valuable.

At the very least, they could serve as ordinary people and provide him with dragon energy.

Of course, if he only provides the basic value of dragon energy, he can only guarantee that the other party will barely survive.

Ji Qiu has always believed that, in any world, the kind of life a person can lead is closely related to the value he can provide to the world!

Ji Qiu used the Bewitching Mind Technique, and his eyes shot out seven-colored divine light.

The divine light shone into the eyes of the Tian family head, instantly making his vision blurry.

"Why does the Tian family possess so many demonic bulls?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family replied, "Because the Tian family is of royal blood from the Qi Kingdom, and has the bloodline of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the Bull Demon King, they possess the ability to tame demon bulls!"

"The Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the Bull Demon King? What is this thing? And what does it have to do with the royal bloodline of the Qi Kingdom?"

Ji Qiu's breath hitched, as if she was about to hear some incredible secret.

Is this the Bull Demon King who is the Great Sage Equaling Heaven that he knows?
The head of the Tian family said, "The Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the Bull Demon King, is one of the Seven Sages of the Demon Clan."

The Demon Saint is a being among the demon race who is even more powerful than the Demon King.

In ancient times, the human race was weak and depended on the demon race for survival, and intermarriage between the two races was common.

All humans possess the bloodline of the demon race.

The royal family of Qi possesses the bloodline of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the Bull Demon King.

"Hmm, if the demon race was so powerful, why did they disappear later?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family said, "The specific reasons are unclear, but according to ancient legends, the war between King Wu and King Zhou, and the Investiture of the Gods, was a great war between the human race and the demon race."

King Wu of Zhou led the Zhou state, which was mainly composed of humans, to destroy the Shang state, which was mainly composed of demons, and finally established the dominant position of humans in the Nine Provinces.

At the same time, the Zhou king's status was elevated from "King of Men" to "Son of Heaven."

"So, after the Zhou Dynasty was established, were there no more demons in the world?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family said, "The Zhou Kingdom has only driven the most powerful demon race forces out of the Central Plains, but besides the Shang Kingdom, there are still many demon race countries on the Central Plains."

For five hundred years during the Spring and Autumn Period, the main task of the various vassal states in the Central Plains was to eliminate these barbarian states that worshipped demons.

After all the demon race nations were wiped out, hundreds of vassal states were annexed, leaving only seven major powers.

Thus began the Warring States period.

"Among the Seven Warring States, are you the only ones who possess demon blood?" Ji Qiu continued to ask.

The head of the Tian family shook his head and said, "No, the royal families of the seven Warring States all have the bloodline of the demon race in their bodies."

The royal family of Zhao possesses the bloodline of wolf demons, thus their royal members have the ability to tame and command demon wolves.

The wolf's wildness and agility could help the Zhao army in grassland warfare and border defense.

Historically, the cavalry of the Zhao state repeatedly resisted foreign enemies due to their flexibility and mobility, and the domesticated wolf packs assisted in reconnaissance, raids, and pursuits on the battlefield.

The royal family of Wei possesses the bloodline of elephant demons, thus their royal descendants have the ability to tame and command demonic elephants.

The demonic elephant possesses immense strength and can serve as a powerful force for assaulting enemy lines in plains warfare.

At the same time, the demonic elephant can also provide assistance for the construction of large-scale projects. The demonic elephant played an indispensable role in the Wei Kingdom's ability to build so many water conservancy projects.

The Korean royal family possesses the bloodline of an eagle demon, thus its royal members have the ability to tame and command demonic eagles.

The Demon Eagle possesses keen eyesight, enabling it to detect distant enemies from the air and provide early warning and intelligence support to the South Korean military.

This is why South Korea has earned the reputation that "the world's strongest bows and crossbows all come from South Korea".

The royal family of Chu possessed the bloodline of a snake demon, thus their royal members had the ability to tame and control the demonic snakes.

The demonic serpent can move freely through mountains, forests, and waters. The Chu Kingdom used this characteristic of the demonic serpent for covert warfare, to protect its territory, and to transmit information in complex terrain, making it extremely powerful in combat!
The royal family of Yan possesses the bloodline of a deer demon, thus their royal members have the ability to tame and command demon deer.

The large number of demon deer gave their army the ability to move quickly through snow and forests.

The Qin royal family possessed the bloodline of a horse demon, thus their royal members had the ability to tame and control demonic horses.

Therefore, among the seven states, the Qin cavalry was the most powerful.

The speed and endurance of the legendary horses endowed the Qin army with formidable mobility and striking power, playing a crucial role in the wars to unify the six states.

"Damn! Was the previous version of this Dragon Qi Three Kingdoms world the Demon Spring and Autumn Period?" Ji Qiu's lips twitched slightly as he secretly complained to himself.

However, he continued, "Since the royal families of the seven kingdoms possessed such powerful abilities, why have we not heard of any descendants of the seven royal families for hundreds of years after the fall of Qin?"

Although a large number of the royal descendants of these seven kingdoms were killed when the Qin state unified the world.

During the Chu-Han Contention, another large number of them were killed.

But since they possess such powerful abilities, and these abilities are passed down through generations of blood, how could they possibly disappear without a trace?

Just like the Tian family of Qi County, if they had always possessed the ability to tame demon bulls, how could they have remained only a mid-level aristocratic family for four hundred years during the Han Dynasty?

The head of the Tian family said with a wry smile, "It's not that simple."

I don't know what became of the descendants of the other seven kingdoms, but as far as the Tian family is concerned, we were only able to re-tame the demon bull more than a decade ago.

"You only regained the ability to command the demon bull more than ten years ago? Why is that? What happened more than ten years ago?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family said, "I don't know what happened more than ten years ago, but it's also possible that nothing happened at all."

However, as time goes by, the barrier around Kyushu is gradually weakening.

"The Nine Provinces Barrier? What's that?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family said, "It is said that during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, the amount of dragon energy in the bodies of ordinary people was ten times that of today."

There are not so many restrictions on the cultivation of secret arts; anyone can cultivate secret arts and become a scholar.

However, after the Qin Dynasty unified the world, the First Emperor, in pursuit of immortality, used a supreme secret technique to establish a barrier around the nine provinces, collecting the dragon energy of the world to nourish himself alone.

This measure prevents those of different races in the Central Plains from becoming demons, suppresses the demon bloodline within humans, reduces the amount of dragon energy, and increases the difficulty of cultivating dragon energy techniques several times over!

"Is that so? What happened next?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family said, "Birth, aging, sickness and death are the will of Heaven. The First Emperor’s vain pursuit of immortality is going against Heaven’s will. Going against Heaven’s will surely bring divine punishment."

Thus, the First Emperor, by divine retribution, died young.

"Uh, is this how the First Emperor died?"

If he truly died in this way, then the dragon energy he collected should have been returned to all living beings after his death.

"But as you said, it seems that this dragon energy has not returned." Ji Qiu pondered.

The head of the Tian family said, "Indeed, it was not returned. Although the First Emperor has passed away, the Nine Provinces Barrier has been preserved, serving as a confinement and protection for the Central Plains."

"Imprisonment and protection? What do you mean by that?" Ji Qiu asked.

The head of the Tian family said, "The reason why the Nine Provinces Barrier is said to be a constraint on the Central Plains is because it suppresses the development of the Central Plains."

This has led to a gradual decline in the strength of the Central Plains and the Nine Provinces.

However, at the same time, due to the existence of the Nine Provinces Barrier, alien races outside the Nine Provinces are also unable to invade the Nine Provinces.

Because as soon as they enter the Nine Provinces Barrier, they will be severely injured!

Furthermore, if the Central Plains troops attack beyond the region, they will also receive the bonus effect of the Nine Provinces Barrier.

During the Former Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu's ability to sweep away the Xiongnu and pursue the fleeing enemy was largely due to the establishment of the Nine Provinces as a boundary.

It is said that the Nine Provinces Barrier has the ability to absorb the dragon energy of alien races from beyond the realm and enhance the destiny of the Central Plains.

But it's unclear whether it's true or false!

"The Nine Provinces Barrier actually has such power?"
But if the Nine Provinces Barrier really had such power, then Emperor Wu of Han should have been able to sustain himself through war, growing stronger with each battle!
"But why did you leave the Central Plains so devastated, with nine out of ten houses empty and the people suffering?" Ji Qiu asked, frowning.

Historically, Emperor Wu of Han's northern expedition against the Xiongnu nearly wiped out the Han Dynasty.

However, in history, the northern expeditions against the Xiongnu targeted the money, grain, and cloth produced by ordinary people.

In this world of Dragon Qi Three Kingdoms, dragon energy is the primary productive force.

If conquering foreign tribes could truly restore the dragon's energy or the mandate of heaven, then Emperor Wu of Han would not have ended up in such a predicament.

The head of the Tian family shook his head and said, "That's because Emperor Wu of Han followed the same path as Qin Shi Huang and also wanted to live forever!"
He not only used all the divine mandates he obtained from his northern expedition against the Xiongnu, but also pursued immortality.

They also used all the dragon energy collected domestically in their pursuit of immortality.

Domestically, the people were naturally suffering...

"..." Ji Qiu.

Ji Qiu said, "But Emperor Wu of Han did not die in his prime."

"That's right, I'm not entirely sure of the specific reasons either."

It could be that Emperor Wu's power was greater than that of Qin Shi Huang, or it could be for other reasons.

But Emperor Wu did indeed escape unscathed despite divine retribution.

However, it is said that the Han dynasty was cursed from then on, and it was difficult for it to have a long-lived emperor! "The head of the Tian family said.

Ji Qiu nodded and said, "Alright! Then why do you guess that the Nine Provinces Barrier is about to disappear? Is it simply because you have regained the ability to command the demon bull?"

"Moreover, the Nine Provinces Barrier has existed for over four hundred years."

Even if this was an unparalleled secret technique used by the First Emperor, it would be difficult for it to exist for so long.

For a secret technique to exist for hundreds of years, it must be powered by someone.

I think that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty's northern expedition against the Xiongnu was probably motivated by a desire to fight them.

The expansion into the Western Regions and the suppression of foreign tribes in the early period of the Later Han Dynasty provided it with a second boost.

However, as the Later Han dynasty declined, it had not attacked foreign tribes for a long time.

Therefore, the power of the Nine Provinces Barrier should be gradually being depleted.

It was time for him to die peacefully in his sleep.

Ji Qiu remained silent, wondering if the timeline of Dragon Kingdom would continue to follow the historical timeline of the modern world.

After the Three Kingdoms period came the Five Barbarian Invasions, a period of invasion by foreign tribes.

If the world of Dragon Kingdom is indeed set up this way, then the disappearance of the Nine Provinces Barrier at this time seems quite normal.

But should such a powerful secret technique just be allowed to disappear?
Should he do something to preserve this secret technique?
Of course, he preserved this secret technique not for the sake of the people of the Central Plains or anything like that.

In his view, the head of the Tian family was right about one thing: the Nine Provinces Barrier was both a protection and a confinement for the Central Plains.

It may be able to protect the Central Plains for the time being, but in the long run, it is probably more harmful than beneficial.

Every gift from fate comes with a hidden price tag.

The Han Dynasty enjoyed the protection of the Nine Provinces for four hundred years, and now it has to pay back with the Five Barbarian Invasions!

Therefore, having the Nine Provinces Barrier may not necessarily be a good thing for the Central Plains.

Losing the Nine Provinces Barrier may not necessarily be a bad thing.

From a dialectical perspective, one can only say that each side has its own advantages and disadvantages.

However, Ji Qiu didn't actually care whether the Nine Provinces Barrier was beneficial or harmful to the Central Plains.

What he cared about was this secret technique, which was related to immortality!

Ji Qiu is a person who never forgets his original aspirations.

Therefore, he always kept in mind his purpose in coming to the world of Dragon Qi Three Kingdoms.

He came here to obtain extraordinary power.

Therefore, whether it's recruiting civil and military officials, building up power, or even vying for supremacy, it all serves this purpose.

What is the ultimate goal of acquiring extraordinary power?
It's about achieving immortality!
Although the two pioneers seemed to meet with unfortunate ends on the continent where they sought immortality through the Nine Provinces Barrier.

However, from Qin Shi Huang to Emperor Wu of Han, it is still evident that they made great progress.

At least Qin Shi Huang died young, and Emperor Wu of Han died of old age.

So, if Ji Qiu can become the third person to seek immortality, who dares to say he won't succeed?
Of course, this is a long-term plan.

As things stand, even if he wanted to do something for the Kyushu Barrier, it seems he doesn't know where to start!

"Hmm, do you know how to restore the power of the Kyushu Barrier?" Ji Qiu asked uncertainly.

Because he didn't believe that the head of the Tian family would know such secret information.

Unexpectedly, the head of the Tian family actually gave him a reply.

"It is said that the First Emperor used the Nine Tripods of Yu the Great to perform the secret technique of the Nine Provinces Barrier."

The ability of the Nine Provinces Barrier to attack alien races and reclaim destiny was also achieved through the Nine Tripods of Yu the Great.

"Therefore, if we can find the Nine Cauldrons of Yu the Great, perhaps we can restore the effect of the Nine Provinces Barrier," said the head of the Tian family.

Ji Qiu: "..."

Okay, we've come full circle.

Unexpectedly, the Nine Tripods of Yu the Great are actually involved in quite a lot of things.

Where are the Nine Tripods of Yu the Great?

Well, according to the information provided by Jia Xu, it seems that Kong Rong knows the whereabouts of the Qingzhou Cauldron among the Nine Cauldrons of Yu the Great.

It seems he needs to take over the Beihai Kingdom as soon as possible and interrogate Kong Rong for information about the Qingzhou Cauldron.

He then extracted some more information from the Tian family members.

The main purpose was to inquire about their family's secrets, as well as the uses and training methods of the demon bull.

Through interrogation and search, he roughly estimated the spoils of this attack on Tian's Wubao.

First, they captured Qi County.

The Tian family of Qi Commandery was the undisputed hegemon of Qi Commandery. Although taking over Tian's Wubao was not the same as taking over Qi Commandery, it was very close.

Especially with the surrender of the Tian family head, he only needs to write a few letters to make all six counties in Qi County lay down their arms and surrender.

Taking over Qi Commandery means gaining control of its nearly 500,000 inhabitants!

Secondly, it acquired the accumulated wealth of the Tian family's Wubao fortress over hundreds of years.

In modern currency, it would be worth approximately five billion US dollars.

Thirdly, they obtained the Fire Ox Formation Diagram.

The fire ox formation was quite powerful. Despite Gao Shun's command of the Trapped Camp, he easily destroyed the Tian family's fire ox formation.

However, this is because Gao Shun is exceptionally strong.

At the same time, it also empowered the troops with four secret techniques, increasing the combat power of the Trapped Camp by at least two times!

Secondly, the Trapped Camp is exceptionally strong.

With its current strength, the Trapped Camp is capable of confronting any powerful army in the world head-on!
Thirdly, the demonic oxen in the Tian family's Fire Ox Formation are not only few in number, but also of low quality.

The activation level of this demonic bloodline is also graded, just like the levels of secret techniques, and is also divided into nine grades and thirty-six levels.

It is said that once the demon bloodline is activated to the peak of the first grade, one can truly transform into a demon!
The demon bulls cultivated by the Tian family were all at the initial or intermediate level of the ninth rank.

Even if the Fire Ox Formation is formed, it will be difficult to reproduce the power of the original Fire Ox Formation.

It is said that when Tian Dan defeated the Five Nations Alliance, the thousand demon bulls he used were at least of the middle grade of the third rank!

If Ji Qiu can reproduce the power of Tian Dan's Fire Ox Formation, then there will be no rivals in the world!

Fourth, he gained the ability to tame the demon bull.

Of course, this ability can only be achieved through the descendants of the Tian family.

The Tian family members not only need to rely on their bloodline talent to tame the demon bull, but also face many harsh conditions.

First, you need to select cattle that are exceptionally strong.

Secondly, it requires the use of dozens of precious Chinese herbal medicines.

Third, it requires the long-term companionship of the Tian family members.

With such stringent conditions, it's no wonder that it took the Tian family more than a decade to tame a few dozen demonic bulls.

However, these requirements were no problem for Ji Qiu.

Exceptionally strong cattle can be found in the modern world.

Dozens of precious Chinese herbal medicines are currently the main products of Taishan County, and this stuff can be completely self-sufficient.

As for the long-term companionship of the Tian family members, well, their only job from now on will be raising cattle for Ji Qiu every day.

If you don't spend time with the cows every day, who else do you want to spend time with?
However, Ji Qiu's large-scale domestication of demon bulls was not entirely for the purpose of forming the Fire Bull Formation.

This is mainly because of another use of the demon bull.

Consuming demon beef can enhance a human's aptitude for cultivating secret arts!
For ordinary people in the world of Dragon Qi Three Kingdoms, even with abundant resources, the upper limit for cultivating secret techniques is only the peak of the seventh rank.

However, if one consumes demon beef over a long period, this upper limit can be raised to the peak of the fourth rank!
This is a conclusion that the Tian family gradually reached through more than a decade of exploration.

When Ji Qiu first heard the news, he was somewhat bewildered.

But then came great joy.

The major problem that had been hindering the development of his power was finally showing signs of being resolved!

If his followers' aptitude for secret arts cultivation can be significantly improved, his power will experience rapid growth.

After calculating his harvest, Ji Qiu issued the following orders:

Firstly, all the people of Qi Commandery were relocated to Taishan Commandery.

This was both to fill the manpower gap in the twelve major settlements of Taishan County and to completely eliminate the power of the aristocratic families in Qi County.

The Tian family was the hegemon of Qi Commandery and the only medium-sized aristocratic family in Qi Commandery.

However, under the Tian family, there were many smaller families in Qi Commandery who lived as vassals of the Tian family in various parts of Qi Commandery.

These family forces are deeply entrenched and intricate, making them impossible to unravel.

However, a single relocation order can disrupt all their social relationships and eliminate all the middlemen in the dragon energy network.

Of course, implementing this relocation order is not so simple.

It requires strong military power, strong organizational capacity, and even more substantial financial and material resources.

However, Ji Qiu has all of these things!
In terms of military strength, he planned to leave behind his strongest elite unit, the Trapped Camp, to handle this matter.

In terms of organization, he plans to hand it over to the propaganda department, which is a great opportunity to build their propaganda and mobilization capabilities.

Needless to say, in terms of financial and material resources, the supply was open, since Ji Qiu never lacked these things!

Secondly, all land in Qi Commandery belongs to the Governor's Office, which will send professional personnel to carry out unified planning and construction!

Ji Qiu envisioned Qi County's future as a breeding base for demon cattle.

Numerous cattle farms will be built here, raising not only the demonic cattle but also ordinary cattle.

Because the demon bull was born from an ordinary bull.

Thirdly, the core members of the Tian family were spared death, but were demoted to cattle slaves and had to atone for their sins by raising demonic oxen.

The initial rule is that raising one hundred demon bulls can grant one immunity from punishment and make one a free citizen.

Of course, even cattle slaves receive wages for raising cattle, but only one-third of what free people earn.

If nothing unexpected happens, the main job for the Tian family's descendants in the future will probably be raising cattle.

Even if they become free people in the future, it will not be an exception.

Because the salary Ji Qiu offered for raising cattle was definitely high.

With this skill, the Tian family would certainly not starve.

Ji Qiu is considering whether to seek out the royal descendants of the other six kingdoms and have them each raise monsters for him.

Especially for the descendants of the Qin state, the legendary horse was extremely important to the cavalry.

Fourth, issue a recruitment order, regardless of background, only appointing people based on their talents!

In fact, he had wanted to issue a recruitment order for a long time, but he was just a prefect before, and the world was not in great chaos. Issuing a recruitment order would not only cause a lot of trouble, but also not attract many talented people.

Now that he is the governor of a province, and with the world in chaos and Dong Zhuo locked in a fierce battle with the Guandong coalition, he has no time to spare for him. This is a good opportunity to issue a recruitment order!

The four orders have been issued, and without a doubt, they will throw Qi County into chaos and turmoil.

However, this has nothing to do with Ji Qiu.

These issues will be resolved by the Ministry of Government.

If the lord has to do everything, then what's the point of having subordinates?
So Ji Qiu leisurely dusted himself off, opened the time portal, and headed to Le'an County.

The battle wiped out the Tian clan of Qi Commandery, and the other commanderies of Qingzhou were certainly still in shock.

Before the effects of the surprise attack wear off, quickly take another prefecture and completely cut Qingzhou in two!
(End of this chapter)