One man's resistance against Japan, I mobilized a million people to aid Shanghai.

"This time, I will never run away again! I will fight Zhu Ganglie to the death, until we are both dead!!"

Hirohito roared.

Just then—

"boom!"

A muffled but violent explosion faintly came from overhead, causing dust to fall from the top of the air-raid shelter.

Immediately afterwards, the piercing air raid sirens and even more intense gunfire penetrated the thick layer of soil and entered everyone's ears!

A staff officer scrambled into the conference room, his face ashen.

"Your Majesty! Your Excellencies! Outside the city! Bai Qi... Bai Qi's main force has arrived outside Fengtian City!"

"Heavy artillery bombardment of the outer fortifications! The advance troops have begun a probing attack!"

"What?! So fast?!" Several army generals exclaimed in disbelief.

Bai Qi's speed exceeded their worst expectations.

Hirohito's body swayed, and the last trace of color drained from his face.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out; only a gurgling sound came from his throat.

"Your Majesty! There's no time!"

Mitsumasa Yonai abruptly stood up and roared at his aides, "Quickly! Escort His Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress, the Crown Prince, and the princes and princesses out through the emergency exit! Hurry!"

He then looked at Yuan Jiadao and said, "Lord Yuan, please assist us! Bring the imperial artifact and necessary documents! Quickly!"

In the chaos, Hirohito seemed to struggle and resist, but extreme fear and weakness made him almost unable to stand. He was half-supported and half-carried by several strong servants and dragged towards a hidden steel door at the back of the conference room.

Just before he was about to be dragged into the dark passage, Hirohito turned around sharply and, with his last ounce of strength, screamed at Mitsumasa Yonai:

"Minee! You... stay! Command the defense of Fengtian! Do everything you can... to hold off the enemy!"

"And... tell my children... I... I have failed my ancestors..."

Her voice choked with sobs, filled with endless sorrow and resentment, before disappearing behind the heavy door.

Mitsumasa Yonai knelt on the ground and kowtowed heavily towards the passageway, tears streaming down his face.

"Your Majesty, please take care! Your subject... obeys the decree!"

He wiped away his tears, and when he looked up again, all that remained in his eyes was the resolute determination of a soldier facing death.

"Gentlemen!"

He glanced at the remaining officers and civilians.

"His Majesty has entrusted us with the mandate of Heaven! We have no choice but to repay him with our lives!"

"Order: The Fengtian Garrison Division, relying on the city's fortifications, shall resist step by step!"

"The overseas Chinese volunteer force will distribute weapons and assist in the defense of the city, focusing on the weak points of the city walls and the main streets!"

"Burn all important documents, blueprints, and supplies! We can't leave them to the enemy!"

"I declare to the entire army and all the citizens of the city: We are ready to shed our last drop of blood for His Majesty and for the Empire! To die for our country is this very day!"

"Hey!!"

......

Outside Fengtian City, dark clouds loomed over the city.

Bai Qi rode a black Japanese horse, standing atop a small hill, coldly gazing at the enormous city.

Behind him stretched an endless line of "servants serving in the army".

These troops, composed of people from various ethnic groups in Southeast Asia, were poorly equipped and their military bearing was far less disciplined than that of the main force of the expeditionary force.

But in their eyes, a greedy and fanatical flame was burning.

Bai Qi gave them the simplest command, which was also the most effective mobilization:

"After the city falls, do not sheath your sword for three days, and keep 70% of the spoils for yourself."

"Those who kill the enemy will be richly rewarded, while those who cower and fail to advance will be executed! Those who are ineffective in plundering will be punished!"

It was this simple promise that inspired these soldiers to join the army with high morale.

For these diverse and complex servants, there was no more direct or provocative order.

Fengtian, as the "capital" of the puppet Manchukuo regime, was seen by them as a giant treasure trove flowing with milk and honey and piled high with gold and silver.

The "Japanese soldiers" and "high-ranking expatriates" in the city were the perfect targets for them to vent their pent-up grievances and demonstrate their "loyalty."

"Attack." Bai Qi's voice was devoid of any emotion.

The first to fire were hundreds of cannons of various types, which roared and poured steel and flames onto the walls, bunkers and outer positions of Fengtian.

Thick smoke and flames instantly engulfed the city's outline.

Immediately afterwards, the soldiers, like a pack of hyenas smelling blood, surged toward the city wall like a tide, howling in a chaotic and frenzied manner in various languages, driven by their officers.

The Japanese garrison and the civilian volunteer corps on the city wall put up a fierce resistance.

Machine gun bullets rained down like water, and hand grenades fell like raindrops.

Soldiers fell in droves, their blood staining the moat and the ground at the base of the city walls.

But those behind them stepped over the corpses of their companions and continued to surge upwards.

They erected makeshift ladders and braved gunfire to climb them.

Some people strapped explosives to their bodies and charged toward the city gate or the breach in the city wall, howling as they rushed toward it.

The battle entered its most brutal and bloody phase from the very beginning.

On the city wall, the remaining Bushido spirit of the Japanese soldiers was ignited under the pressure of death, and they engaged in a fierce hand-to-hand battle with the servants who rushed up.

Bayonets clashed, sabers were brandished, fists and kicks flew, teeth were bitten and hands were torn apart...

Both sides were furious.

The situation was even more chaotic for the overseas Chinese volunteer corps, with some firing wildly until they ran out of ammunition and then committing suicide.

Some collapsed and fled in fear, while others unleashed astonishing ferocity in despair, fighting to the death with bamboo spears, kitchen knives, and even stones.

In Fengtian City, every section of the city wall and every crenellation has become a meat grinder that devours lives.

Bai Qi looked on expressionlessly.

The number of casualties among the soldiers rose rapidly, but he didn't care at all.

The purpose of these people is to deplete, test, and create chaos.

Their lives were meant to pave the way for the final blow.

The battle lasted for most of the day.

My servants attacked the city walls several times, but were driven back by the Japanese soldiers' desperate counterattacks.

Several breaches were blown into the city wall, and the two sides fought back and forth at the breaches, resulting in mountains of corpses.

As the sun set, the walls of Fengtian were damaged in many places, the defending troops were short of manpower, ammunition was being used up in large quantities, and morale was rapidly declining due to continuous high casualties.

Although the soldiers suffered heavy casualties, they maintained a frenzied offensive momentum under the lure of "not sheathing their swords for three days" and Bai Qi's ruthless supervision.

At the temporary command post, Mitsumasa Yonai received urgent reports from various locations.

He knew that it was only a matter of time before the city walls fell.

The real test will be the brutal street fighting.

He ordered his troops to consolidate their defensive lines and prepare for a final stand on the city's main streets and important buildings.

When Fengtian City was about to fall and Yonai Mitsumasa was preparing to issue the final order of "all men must die for the cause and the entire city must be burned down," an unexpected turn of events occurred.

Emperor Hirohito, who had been secretly escorted away, reappeared in the city under the protection of a small squad of loyal guards!

He changed into a more fitted old-style army general's uniform, his chest adorned with medals, and held the "Ama-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi," a symbol of imperial power. His face was haggard, but his eyes were unusually firm, even carrying a kind of exhilarating, final burst of energy.

It turned out that after leaving the underground palace, the immense sense of shame caused Hirohito to change his mind halfway through the journey.

He ordered the convoy to return, taking only his most loyal guards with him, declaring that he would "live and die with the capital" and "inspire the soldiers with the Emperor's own power to wage a final holy war."

When Yonai Mitsumasa saw the Emperor return, he almost fainted.

"Your Majesty! You...you're back! It's too dangerous here!"

"Minister Minai, there's no need for further words."

Hirohito raised his hand to stop him, and his voice was surprisingly calm.

"I am the Son of Heaven, the supreme commander of the imperial army."

"At this critical juncture of the empire's survival, how can I live alone? I must stand with my soldiers and with Fengtian."

He walked to the balcony of the command post, raised the "Kusanagi Sword" high, and shouted with all his might towards the officers and soldiers gathered below in fear:

"Warriors of the Empire! I am here! With you!"

"Though the enemy is numerous, the spirit of the Yamato people will never perish! The spirit of Bushido will live on forever!"

"For the Emperor! For the Empire! For the future of our descendants! Defend Fengtian to the death! Let Zhu Ganglie see what true imperial elites are!"

The Emperor's sudden appearance and personal supervision of the battle were like a shot in the arm, piercing the heart of the defending army that was on the verge of collapse.

The dying Japanese soldiers and some fanatical expatriates launched their most frenzied counterattack yet.

"Long live His Majesty the Emperor!!"

"Onboard!!!"

The defensive line, which had been retreating steadily, was temporarily stabilized, and even pushed back the Pu Cong Army, which had invaded parts of the city, by a considerable distance.

Just when Hirohito thought victory was in sight, a strange scene reappeared on the battlefield.

The once empty space in Bai Qi's arena is now covered with dense ripples.

then--

"Swish, swish, swish!"

The sound of orderly footsteps rang out.

Zhu Yong actually led 500,000 elite troops to Fengtian, just to kill the Japanese emperor and completely exterminate the Japanese.

"My lord!"

Bai Qichong gave Zhu Yong a military salute.

"How is the battle going?"

"The Japanese Emperor himself came to the front line to boost morale. The servants were too useless and were pushed out again."

Zhu Yong nodded slightly. "In that case, let's increase the intensity for the Japanese devils."

"Bring out all the Katyusha rockets we just produced, and let those Japanese devils experience what despair truly means!!"

Soon, under Zhu Yong's orders, the clones took out Katyusha rockets from their personal spaces and aimed them at the city wall guarded by the Japanese soldiers.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!"

Like shooting stars streaking across the sky, countless beams of light swiftly swept across the air before crashing heavily onto the walls of Fengtian.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Under the concentrated bombardment of Katyusha rockets, the walls of Fengtian finally collapsed.

"Attack the city!"

Zhu Yong's orders were extremely concise.

The main force of the expeditionary force, which had been preparing for a long time, poured into the city like an iron torrent through multiple gaps.

Unlike the common soldiers, they did not disperse immediately after entering the city. Instead, they worked in platoons and companies to systematically wipe out the remaining enemy forces, control key transportation routes, and divide and surround the Japanese strongholds that were still resisting.

The real street fighting has begun, but it is an asymmetrical street fighting.

The Japanese resistance remained fierce, often fighting to the last man.

But faced with overwhelming superior troop strength, firepower, and organization, their struggles only made the process of death longer and more brutal.

Under the desperate protection of the Imperial Guard, Hirohito attempted to move towards the core fortifications in the city center, but was quickly scattered in the chaos.

His guards fell one by one.

Finally, at a burning street corner, they were surrounded by a squad of expeditionary soldiers who were searching ahead.

Several loyal guards tried to cover his escape, but were instantly riddled with bullets.

Hirohito stood alone in the ruins, his magnificent military uniform stained with dust and blood, the "Ama-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi" in his hand supporting his swaying body.

He looked at the soldiers around him, their cold gun barrels pointed at him, at the towering fire and thick smoke in the distance, and at the gradually thinning but still piercing gunfire...

He opened his mouth, as if to shout "Long live the Empire," or curse, or beg for mercy...

But in the end, no sound was made.

Extreme exhaustion, fear, and the disillusionment of the empire's collapse drained his last bit of strength.

With a clang, the "Kusanagi Sword" fell from his hand and landed on the ground.

His legs went weak, and he collapsed forward, unconscious.

Several expeditionary soldiers stepped forward, roughly tied him up, and dragged him away like a dead dog.

Almost at the same time, Mitsumasa Yonai ended his life in the basement of the command post with a Nambu Type 14 pistol.

The gunshots were muffled, completely drowned out by the deafening artillery fire and shouts of battle outside.

With the supreme commander falling into a coma and committing suicide, and the core areas falling one by one, the organized resistance in Fengtian City finally collapsed completely.

All that remained were sporadic gunshots and desperate suicide explosions.

Surrounded by Bai Qi and numerous generals, Zhu Yong stepped into the devastated headquarters of the Kwantung Army.

He didn't even glance at the captured, ashen-faced Japanese high-ranking officers and civil officials, and went straight to the head seat to sit down.

"Have you found Hirohito?" he asked.

"Found her. She's unconscious and has been placed in solitary confinement," Bai Qi replied.

Zhu Yong nodded, his gaze falling on the huge, damaged map of East Asia on the wall.

Fengtian fell, and Hirohito was captured.

This means that the militaristic group that had ravaged China for half a century since the First Sino-Japanese War has completely collapsed.

"Japanese country"

Zhu Yong spoke slowly, his voice echoing in the silent command post, carrying a heavy and cold tone, as if proclaiming a historical verdict.

"Dead."