Become a king right from the start, beginning with receiving rewards from all the heavens.

It's incredibly embarrassing for Dongzhou to say!

Although there seems to be no threat from the demon race, the resources that can be obtained from them are correspondingly less.

The demon race itself is one of the best cultivation resources for the human race.

The blood, flesh, and soul of the demon race are excellent cultivation resources for the human race.

This is why there is no truly powerful dynasty in the Eastern Continent.

None of the dynasties in the Eastern Continent have ever survived to the second cycle of reincarnation.

Why would a dynasty like the Great Wu choose to be based in the Northern Continent?

It's because the world outside the Northern Continent is the world of demons, and killing demons is how one obtains cultivation resources.

For the forces of the Eastern Continent, it is extremely difficult to enter the sea and obtain resources.

In the sea, the human race's combat strength was halved, putting them at a disadvantage.

Forget about killing sea monsters for resources; it would be a miracle if we didn't get eaten by those creatures in the sea.

However, the sea monsters rarely come ashore.

Although they lack intelligence, the instinct for survival tells these sea creatures that going ashore would be life-threatening.

Time passed slowly, and if any powerful force were to thoroughly investigate the Great Wu...

Then you would discover that the Great Wu Dynasty was secretly preparing for war.

Xia Zhaoyan, of course, had no idea either, despite the formidable power of his Underworld and Jade Capital.

However, its intelligence capabilities do not even cover the Eastern Continent yet, let alone anything outside of it.

...

On the border of Yunmeng Kingdom, Guo Jing's gaze pierced through hundreds of kilometers, looking towards the opposite border.

Suddenly, a cold shout rang out.

"Hmph, you want to fight me again?"

Guo Jing smiled calmly and withdrew his gaze.

It has been a year since I arrived here, and I have fought hundreds of battles, big and small.

Initially, the two sides were merely engaged in a major war between vassal states, but gradually the armies of Dayu and Daxia began to personally intervene.

With the armies of both sides plus their respective vassal states, the total number has long exceeded 100 million.

Over the past year, the reputation of the Heavenly Punishment Army has become incredibly renowned.

Although they numbered only 300,000, the enemy soldiers who died at their hands numbered over 10 million.

However, the Heavenly Punishment Army itself suffered relatively few losses, with only a few thousand members having perished so far.

With a commander like Guo Jing, the fighting strength of the 300,000 Heavenly Punishment Army, enhanced by the military formation, is twice the normal level.

"General Qi, we now have 200,000 soldiers in our Heavenly Punishment Army who have broken through to the peak of the Innate Realm."

"The remaining people are all at the late stage of the Innate Realm!"

A hint of satisfaction appeared on Guo Jing's face; he had not disappointed His Highness's expectations.

This not only enabled the army to successfully complete its battlefield transformation!

It also allowed each of the 300,000 troops to break through two minor realms.

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from the sky.

"Guo Jing, come out and have a chat!"

The sound startled both armies, who thought another battle was about to begin, so they began their preparations again.

The soldiers were already familiar with this scene.

"What? Old man, you're actually starting a war this time?"

Guo Jing's figure appeared in the air, his armor highlighting his imposing presence under the sunlight.

"This isn't a war; Daewoo is withdrawing its troops!"

These words immediately left both armies in disbelief.

The happiest of all were the vassal states of both sides.

The year-long war resulted in the combined casualties of forty to fifty million soldiers from both sides' vassal states.

This was a devastating loss for a vassal state that was only the size of the Great Xia province; it was almost unbearable.

The Yunmeng Kingdom on the Great Xia side is doing relatively well, with casualties only exceeding ten million.

The casualties of the vassal states of Daewoo on the other side are nearly 30 million.

Disappointment appeared on Guo Jing's face.

It's such a pity to retreat from such a good opponent.

Although he was unable to completely kill his opponent.

However, after a year of intense competition, signs of a breakthrough have recently emerged.

Just as he was about to break through and prepare to completely annihilate the opponent's Dragon Transformation Realm cultivator, he didn't expect the opponent to withdraw at this moment.

"Fellow Daoist, would you like to stay a few more days?"

...

"Guo Jing, don't think I don't know your current situation."

"Is a breakthrough imminent?"

"Haha! I'm going to leave right now, just to piss you off."

The army below looked at each other in disbelief; this was the first time they had ever seen a Dragon Transformation Realm cultivator swearing like that.

That's really amazing!

The Dragon Transformation Realm cultivator opposite him scoffed, thinking, "Does he really think I'm a fool?"

Are you waiting here for me to break through and kill you?

In the past, I wouldn't have had this worry at all.

However, in recent years, too many people at the Dragon Transformation Realm have fallen.

Especially the subordinates of that Crown Prince of Great Xia, they are truly too strange.

He dared not gamble. What if Guo Jing broke through and actually had the strength to kill him?

"The mountains are high and the roads are long, we'll meet again someday... no, we'll never meet again!"

"Soldiers of the Great Yu Dynasty, heed my command: Retreat immediately!"

He was not worried that the Great Xia would destroy his own country after he withdrew.

Because it was completely unnecessary; a small ancient kingdom was just a burden to a dynasty.

Seeing that the enemy had already retreated, Guo Jing realized that there was no point in keeping the Great Xia army here.

So he gave the order to prepare for the return to the capital.

...

"The Heavenly Punishment Army is back!"

The news spread like wildfire throughout the entire Great Xia Imperial City.

Many people were momentarily dazed, hearing the name of the Heavenly Punishment Army again after a year.

It feels like a very, very long time has passed...

"Let's go outside the city and see what changes have occurred."

Many people inside the city flocked to the outside.

When the Punishment Army appeared that day, many cultivators' expressions changed.

"Hiss...the number isn't even a few less?"

...

Not only that, their cultivation levels have all improved significantly!

...

"That murderous aura, even from this distance, makes me, a Grandmaster, feel suffocated!"

Anyone can see that this army has changed a lot compared to a year ago!

A year ago, the Heavenly Punishment Army looked like a prestigious and luxurious army.

So now the Heavenly Punishment Army has transformed into a true killing machine.

...

In the Crown Prince's residence, Xia Zhaoyan nodded in satisfaction after listening to Guo Jing's report.

He then joked, "Alright, you and your wife have been separated for so long, now is not the time for you to cultivate."

"Instead, go find your wife. As the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder; you've been apart for a year!"

The women behind him covered their mouths and chuckled upon hearing this, while Guo Jing's face also turned bright red.

He then vanished from the spot, leaving behind a single sentence that echoed in the air.

"Your Highness, I take my leave!"

...

Time passed by little by little, and five years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Xia Zhaoyan sighed in his residence:

"Ten years have passed since I was crowned king. Time flies!"

"I'm almost thirty now. In my past life, that would have been considered an old god!"

These five years may seem to have passed in a flash, but a lot has happened in the Great Xia.

The most important thing is that a prince, imitating Prince Heng, voluntarily withdrew after visiting Xia Zhaoyan!

Those familiar faces flashed through Xia Zhaoyan's mind.

In the past five years, a total of ten princes have withdrawn from the race.

The nobles behind them were quite clever; in order to ensure the family's continuity, they completely gave up the competition in this generation!

Xia Zhaoyan certainly knew what those nobles were up to!