I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

"Does Your Highness know how old Julius is this year?"

"Around...forty?"

“Julius is sixty-three years old, Your Highness.”

"Hmm, I'm already that old?"

Bai Zhou touched his cheek, feeling quite emotional.

His actual age was only a few years different from Julius'.

I never imagined that he would have lived in this world for so many years. If I didn't think about it carefully, his childhood would still seem like yesterday.

"Ascending to the position of consul... Ah, though it is called consul, the position of consul in Gaul, which values ​​fair elections, is now Julius's throne."

In the elder brother's view, the so-called fairness of Gaul was a hellish joke.

It's funny, but also a little sad. In the end, fairness in this world can only be in the hands of a select few.

"Having reigned for decades, he has conquered several surrounding countries and successively subdued Casimir and Ursus, but his biggest worry is still Victoria, which is entrenched in the south. He is old and his days are numbered. If he cannot remove this worry before he dies, the saint will not be satisfied. How could Julius, a proud and arrogant man, not be anxious?"

"As the threat from Gaul has increased year by year, in order to protect itself, Letania has formed an alliance with Victoria to jointly resist the Gallic naval forces."

"Over the years, there have been countless problems arising from border frictions between the two sides."

“It’s not just Julius who wants to annex Letania and Victoria; Uther also wants to annex the vast and fertile lands of Gaul so that his people can rule the continent.”

"So, Ursus is a pawn discarded by Gaul?"

Bai Zhou had already figured everything out the moment his brother mentioned Julius.

If Gaul wants to wage war against Victoria wholeheartedly, it must be wary of the movements of the Great Yan.

Although there was a non-aggression pact, it was an agreement between Julius Caesar, the consul of Gaul, and Zhenlongdi of Yan.

Now, it is his son who holds the position of the true dragon. What does the father's agreement have to do with me, his son?

To prevent being betrayed, Ursus became a dagger to disrupt the Great Yan's peace of mind, causing the Great Yan to be preoccupied with border troubles and unable to attend to the war in the west.

Even though Yan Kingdom defeated Ursus, Ursus's numerous warships could still severely damage Yan Kingdom's army. A weakened Yan Kingdom would be unable to participate in the war for continental supremacy.

It wouldn't matter if the Great Yan didn't suffer much damage, because the changes in the Northern Territory would soon occur.

The defeated Ursus and the devastated Eastern Kingdom are no match for the demons. At that time, your Yan Kingdom will have to face an even more disgusting scourge. Who knows, the struggle for supremacy here might be over before your Yan Kingdom has dealt with the demons, let alone cause trouble for Gaul.

"This open scheme is truly disgusting."

Julius was right; the Great Yan would not ignore the chaos caused by the demons.

The struggle for supremacy is a matter for nations, while the struggle for evil is a matter for the entire continent.

Just as the minor noises in the Starsea One-Man Hall are merely petty squabbles between individual empires, the natural disaster that breaks the boundary is a major event for the entire Starsea.

One wrong move and it's a complete rewrite of the bad ending.

"However, Ursus is just a mere..."

Bai Zhou didn't say anything more, but instead asked his elder brother:

"While the Northern Sea is desirable, its massive size and slow, clumsy movements make it too demanding to expect it to travel ten thousand miles a day."

As soon as he spoke, the ice cave transformed into a giant city, lying across the table.

"However, the situation at the border is urgent. Does the sir have a plan that can both accelerate the Northern Expedition and protect the soldiers at the border?"

"..."

The elder brother lowered his eyes slightly and sipped his tea.

"Your subject... does indeed have a method."

After pondering for a long time, the elder brother looked up at the daytime and revealed a slight smile.

"What good plan do you have, sir? Please discuss it with Xi."

The elder brother did not speak, but simply raised his hand, his fingertips touching a few drops of water that had fallen on the table, forming the image of the Jade Gate.

"Your Highness, please take a look."

Then, the ice city crashed down, smashing the jade gate to pieces.

Eight Heavenly Warriors Descend

"tui!"

Ye Wenshun spat on a slain Ursus man, then rubbed his face haphazardly to rouse himself from his exhaustion.

"Saburo! Saburo!"

Ye Wenshun looked around and called out loudly to Li Guiwen.

"General Ye!"

A weak echo came from the wall. Ye Wenshun looked over and saw the burly, hoofed man slumped in the corner, his weapon, a giant axe dripping with blood, draped beside his legs.

"Is Sanlang injured?"

Ye Wenshun walked to his side, leaning on his sword, and asked with concern.

"No, these mere bear thieves can't hurt me."

"But General Ye, your arm..."

Li Guiwen could clearly see that Ye Wenshun's arm was stained with blood.

"It's nothing. It's just an injury from the day before yesterday. I used too much force just now, and the wound reopened. I'll just wash it when I get back."

Ye Wenshun sat opposite him, his sword resting on his lap, leaning slightly to the side as he gazed at the sky.

The sky was overcast, and the clouds were thicker than his blanket.

"It seems the two of them won't be able to arrive today."

"The snow just keeps falling without end."

Ye Wenshun sighed deeply.

Why does the heavens also favor those wicked bears?

"However, I think it's better that they're late, because we can still earn more military merits. They're just unlucky to be late, so they can't earn this merit."

Li Guiwen was slightly taken aback, then burst into laughter along with him.

"That's right. If they come, they'll only be competing with us for credit. It's better if they come later so we can kill them all."

"Yeah, hahaha...yes..."

Ye Wenshun tilted his head back and reached out to take it.

A snowflake drifted down with the wind, landing lightly in his hand. Yet Ye Wenshun felt that this snowflake was heavier than the city beneath him.

"Enemy attack!"

The deep, long horn sounded three times in a row, and Ye Wenshun's heart became as still as a snowflake melting in his palm.

"Let's go, Saburo."

He stood up, leaning on his sword, and looked across the wall.

Thunder rumbled, and dark clouds slowly approached with the cold wind.

"General Ye, if there is a next time, we will still be comrades."

“Of course, Saburo.”

The snow fell in a flurry, like shooting stars.

"All troops, listen to my command! Hold this position! We shall not retreat, even to the death!"

Ye Wenshun's hoarse roar was swallowed up by the deafening artillery fire.

"We'd rather die than retreat!!!"

But every surviving soldier knew what he was shouting.

"kill!"

A wisp of blood was drawn from the sword's edge, and another enemy died.

But there's more.

More enemies climbed up.

Despite facing an enemy hundreds of times larger, Ye Wenshun found himself incredibly calm.

Yes, he need not be afraid, because he already knows his mission.

As long as the city exists, people will live; if the city is destroyed, people will die.

To die in this city that I have protected for more than ten years would make my life worthwhile.

Unfortunately, he was unable to return his comrades' belongings to their hometowns, nor could he apologize to their families.

He failed to protect his soldiers.

Ye Wenshun let out a breath.

My throat is burning; the last time I drank water was last night.

The sound of cannons filled his ears, making it impossible for him to hear anything.

The relentless barrage of artillery fire caused the runes inscribed on the city walls to collapse from overload. Ancient techniques, having withstood hundreds of years, ultimately succumbed to the power of new technology.

But Ye Wenshun was very happy.

What does this mean?

This means that the bears are getting desperate.

They spent ten days and lost nearly 10,000 people, yet they couldn't even capture a pass that was guarded by only 5,000 men at its peak.

If he were the commander on the other side, he would have been too ashamed to face his comrades and would have washed his neck and committed suicide long ago.

"Come on! My head, worth 100,000, is right here! You petty thieves, have the guts to take it!"

Ye Wenshun grabbed the sword, squeezed out the last bit of strength in his body, and unleashed a sword aura that cut the three Ursus soldiers in two.