Battle for Northern Frontier: The game begins with the grassland woman buying him.

In the days that followed, the entire Stone City sprang into action.

The Han Chinese in Stone City now hold the highest status on this grassland.

Whether they were native grassland people or came from elsewhere, the grassland people who came here did not have a higher status than the Han people here.

Not only are the Han people passing by holding their heads high, but even the local Han people have turned the tables and become the masters.

All these changes were brought about by Stone City, and this is only the smallest of them.

In addition to the change in status, everyone's life has been significantly improved.

Within the territory of Stone City, the slave trade had ceased.

Those Han Chinese who were once sold as commodities have now regained their freedom.

Some followed Stone City to prepare for conquering the world, while others had already gone home.

Whatever the choice, it's an excellent one, one they've never experienced before.

Of course, besides these, the most noticeable change is that the lives of Han Chinese within the entire Stone City area have improved.

They can pursue more careers and earn more money, especially by working for Stone City, where they can earn far more than before.

After integrating the entire special economic zone, Stone City has opened up all trade routes, and they are very safe.

The grassland region controlled by Stone City experienced a peak in trade and commerce.

Whether they are from out of town or locals, they are all willing to do business with the people of Stone City because there is really nothing to fear here. They can just do business and don't care about anything else.

Moreover, business here is booming; anyone who comes here to do business will leave with a full stomach.

Besides the three points mentioned above that ordinary people can intuitively perceive, the senses between other forces will be even more pronounced.

Firstly, those small tribes that were previously considering whether to join Stone City have now truly experienced the benefits of Stone City, because after joining Stone City, their lives are now much better than before.

In the past, they were just a group of poor grassland people, living off the land and relying on the thin water and grass of the grassland to get by.

But now things are different for them. Now they can do business, earn more money, improve their lives, and make themselves stronger. Their tribe has also become more prosperous.

This was something they never dared to imagine before they joined Stone City.

Aside from these, the biggest change is the attitude of those in charge.

In the past, they felt it was somewhat humiliating to follow Stone City, after all, they were noble grassland people, how could they possibly bow down to the people of the Central Plains of the Empire?

But now it seems that everything they did was worthwhile, because after they bowed down, not only did their own forces become stronger, but their tribes also prospered even more.

Ordinary people might just feel that their lives have improved, but as the leader of a tribe, being able to truly feel how ecstatic this prosperity is.

Of course, the tribes are also more stable.

In the past, when they went out to do business or were in their own territory, they worried about being attacked. Now that Stone City is here, they don't have to worry about these things anymore. They can just live their lives peacefully, and nothing else matters.

Besides that, the changes in Stone City are very significant.

Stone City previously had only tens of thousands of troops, but after this reorganization, it now has 100,000 troops.

Such a force of soldiers is terrifying.

It's worth noting that the total number of grassland people in this area is only a few hundred thousand.

All the people from the Central Plains have gathered in Stone City, contributing to its construction and increasing the number of its soldiers. These are all very powerful people from the Central Plains, and their joining Stone City will make everything even stronger.

Stone City is now incredibly powerful in terms of economy, military, and politics; it is no longer the small Stone City it once was.

Stone City is now capable of conquering the world alongside other overlords of the grasslands.

The entire hegemonic circle has now been determined. Apart from the few internal forces selected by the empire, other forces also include many steppe peoples.

The most powerful force on the grasslands is the royal court, followed by the princes under its command.

These princes commanded large armies, and none of them were to be trifled with.

Moreover, they all dreamed of unifying the grasslands and becoming kings of the royal court.

After all, becoming the Khan of the grasslands is everyone's dream.

Stone City's goal was to unite with other Han Chinese tribes and wipe out all these grassland tribes in one fell swoop.

The grasslands of the grassland people, but today the world is about to change.

It wasn't easy for them to get to this point. For example, the forces left behind by the empire—countless forces have perished in normal battles during this period.

After all, there are simply too many forces that cannot survive on the grasslands, and everyone's opportunities, luck, and even strength are very different.

No one could be taken over by the Fierce Dragons as easily as Stone City, and no Fierce Dragons had a powerful third leader like Su Zhan, who was invincible and unstoppable.

All of this is due to favorable timing, location, and human factors. The current situation of heroes rising up on the grasslands and the flames of revolution spreading like wildfire was also stirred up by Stone City. Therefore, all of this is quite interesting.

At this moment, Su Zhan, Bai Zhanqiu, and several other managers began to discuss matters at their residence in Stone City.

Several stewards had already begun reporting on the situation of the small tribes under their jurisdiction.

The daily trade volume in Stone City is now astronomical, and all the tribes are doing business in peace.

Although they lost their weapons and had protons as collateral in Stone City, their lives did improve, and the grassland people had no complaints.

Meanwhile, Stone City's strength has been further enhanced. Stone City is now more prosperous than ever before, with abundant funds and a stronger army.

Therefore, they need to jointly discuss the next battle strategy.

The next battle strategy is actually very simple: we must immediately unite with other imperial forces to encircle and annihilate the remaining grassland tribes, that is, those so-called princes.

Only by dispersing all the remaining forces on the grasslands can the Han people rebuild their power on the grasslands.

This was an extremely difficult battle. Those princes were not like these ordinary grassland tribes, who could be defeated so easily.

Which of those other grassland princes didn't command hundreds of thousands of soldiers? Which one wasn't a seasoned warrior? Which one wasn't a man of great talent and ambition? How could an ordinary person be qualified to sit on the throne of a prince? And this is exactly the scene that Stone City and the others are now facing.

As for the preparations in Stone City, the third and second leaders of Stone City felt there was nothing to say. All these things had been prepared, and the next step was to take action against those so-called princes.

Su Zhan has already sent out spies to inform the other imperial tribes, asking them to choose a date for a meeting so that they can all sit down together. The next step is to take action against the grassland forces.

Bai Zhanqiu, meanwhile, stared at the map, carefully observing everything around him.

The prince closest to them was called Iron Hat, and he was extremely powerful. He controlled twelve cities, each garrisoned with 10,000 soldiers. Such power was immense.

In the past, Stone City was just a small pawn to them, but now Stone City has grown strong and can challenge them.

These princes always stood by and did not take the affairs of the grasslands seriously.

They are completely different from Agudamu.

Agudamu represented the royal court. At that time, the royal court wanted to take action against Stone City because they felt that Stone City was hindering the dignity of the royal court.

But these princes didn't think so. They actually hoped that the royal court would fall into chaos, otherwise how could they, as princes, have the opportunity to become the Heavenly Khan?

But now things are different. Agudamu is dead, the royal court is showing weakness, and some of the other princes are holding back, while others are taking advantage of the situation.

Their targets were not ordinary Han Chinese tribes, but rather nomadic tribes from the grasslands; annexation was the only viable strategy.

This prince, known as the Iron-Hat Prince, was a conservative and traditionalist. He did not attack any of the surrounding small tribes, but simply held fast to his twelve cities.

Although he had no ambition, Su Zhan did not think so.

Which of these princes on the grasslands is easy to deal with?

If everyone were as unscathed as those in iron caps, the grasslands would have been pacified long ago. How could they have ended up like this? Therefore, they must be trying to preserve their strength and wait for their final opportunity.

Su Zhan felt he could no longer give them another chance; such a powerful enemy had to be completely eliminated.

Since they want to remain inactive, let's drag them into this mess.

Where is the benefit of a fight between a snipe and a clam, with the fisherman reaping the reward? If you want that benefit, you have to risk your life.

Being closest to Stone City is your greatest misfortune.

Finally, Su Zhan and Bai Zhanqiu discussed it and decided to take action against them first.

Stone City now has the strength to challenge anyone, even the Iron-Capped King, even if he has 120,000 troops, so what? His 120,000 troops are distributed across twelve cities.

Therefore, each of his cities had at most 10,000 people. For Stone City today, a city with 10,000 people is just an ordinary small city.

In that case, it would be very easy for Su Zhan and his men to take them down.

Moreover, Su Zhan and his men felt that since they were going to take down this iron-hat king, they had to be ruthless and not allow him any chance to catch his breath.

There's no need to take them down one by one; we must launch a full-scale attack, simultaneously assaulting all twelve cities.

Although Stone City is still struggling to deal with such enemies, it is still necessary.

If Stone City can conquer these twelve cities, its strength will undoubtedly increase significantly.

Everything is as it should be; risks and opportunities coexist.

If Stone City wants to become stronger, it needs to invest more strength.

Taking down the hereditary princes was their first priority.

Therefore, Bai Zhanqiu and Su Zhan have decided that their 100,000-strong army will be divided into twelve parts to attack the twelve cities separately, so that the cities will not have time to attend to each other and they will know the dangers of dividing their forces in different places.

By the time they realized what was happening, half of the twelve cities under the Iron-Capped King's control had probably already been captured by the people of Stone City.

The Iron-Capped King's forces will be greatly weakened, making it easier for Su Zhan and his men to eliminate him.

This was Su Zhan's initial plan. He was still waiting for news from other imperial tribes and for the Wild Chicken Nest to gather those people together.

A few days later, news of the wild pheasant neck finally arrived.

These tribal leaders, like Su Zhan, were all eager to make a name for themselves on the grasslands.

However, they felt that the most important thing now was not to get together and discuss things, but to do their best to eliminate the powerful forces around them.

For example, Su Zhan chose a hereditary prince, while the northern tribes chose a prince from the surrounding area.

There are many princes on this grassland, and each of them is extremely powerful.

They had to get rid of these princes first, so that they could rule the entire grassland.

These imperial tribes' primary task now is to launch attacks against the princes around them, rather than discussing important matters across the entire grassland.

Although they now have the strength to challenge the grassland people, the outcome is still uncertain. Their grand plan has not yet succeeded, and everyone must work even harder.

And so, the pheasant neck brought the news.

The leaders of the other tribes unanimously agreed to first deal with those around them, and then sit down together to discuss important matters on the grassland.

After listening to the words of the other tribal leaders, Su Zhan also felt that this was a very feasible idea.

They don't need to discuss the major affairs of the entire grassland right now, since the grassland is not yet in their hands and it's not their place to interfere.

Their first task was to wipe out those princes, and then completely defeat the royal court.

The road ahead is fraught with danger; it's uncertain which tribe might lose everything due to a single misstep, or whether the other tribes will have a chance to challenge the last remaining tribe for the title of ultimate champion.

All of this is very dangerous, and everyone needs to do their part.

What Stone City needs to do first is to eliminate the Iron-Capped Kings. Since the goal is to eliminate the Iron-Capped Kings, the first step is to implement the plan.

Bai Zhanqiu ordered Zhu Yeqing to send out all of his spies to begin a planned exploration of the twelve cities.

A massive number of spies infiltrated caravans, crowds, and ordinary people, penetrating deep into twelve cities. They obtained complete knowledge of every aspect of the cities, including the defenses at the city gates and the division of power within each city.

All of this was the final preparation before the war.

Although the Iron-Capped Kings were on guard, they had no idea that the people from Stone City had already infiltrated the city.

The people of Stone City were extremely adept at these matters; whenever a war broke out, they were always the first to act, having thoroughly investigated everything.

They are experienced and highly skilled, far beyond what these grassland people, who only know how to show off their power, can imagine.