All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

But the Xiongnu people weren't that tall. This group of people were much taller than everyone around them. Regardless of age or gender, they were all huge, which was quite strange.

Among this group, more than a dozen people were exceptionally tall, almost exceeding two meters, and each of them was robust, resembling gorillas.

Moreover, everyone was covered in blood, and some arms were visibly broken, indicating they were all injured.

Han Chunming rode his horse and followed the group into the city.

Han Chunming had already obtained an identity token for this era in Xianyang. Forging an identity token was not too difficult in this era, and besides, Han Chunming traveled around and rarely stayed in one place, so he was not afraid of being investigated by the government.

Even if he were investigated, he would not be afraid. With just a horse and a Qin sword, he could easily kill through dozens of people.

For him, this era was like a journey through life, experiencing all things in the world and all aspects of human existence.

He wasn't sure where he would end up; he just wanted to head north and see the world.

When Han Chunming entered the city, he found it bustling with activity and thriving commerce, with caravans of merchants dressed in all sorts of unusual costumes coming and going in an endless stream.

He quickly settled into an inn, planning to rest in the small town for two days to replenish his food and water before continuing his journey.

Traveling another sixty li or so north, one reaches the border of the Qin state. Han Chunming learned from chatting with an old man in the city that beyond the border, there are seven or eight small states within a radius of several hundred kilometers.

These small countries have small populations, mostly ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. They usually live a nomadic life, herding sheep and cattle, and when they encounter difficulties, they plunder everywhere.

There were also some small countries that relied on Qin to survive. Every few years, they would offer some wealth and special products to Qin. These small countries were sandwiched between the Xiongnu and Qin, and it was common for them to be destroyed occasionally.

Besides these small countries, there are countless nomadic tribes of all sizes scattered across that land beyond the Great Wall.

It's about 60 li from here to the border area, not too close, not too far, and basically safe. There's only this one city within dozens of li of it.

Therefore, caravans flocked to the border every year, and thanks to these caravans stimulating the economy, the small town of Fanxing lived a relatively comfortable life.

This city has not been harassed or attacked by foreign tribes for three or four years. The peaceful life has made Star City more and more prosperous.

The prosperity here is mainly due to the strong and powerful government of the Qin state. For several years, the Qin state had stationed hundreds of thousands of troops along the border to deter the surrounding foreign tribes.

However, despite the deterrent effect, those foreign tribes would still occasionally raid the borders of the Qin Dynasty for survival, such as plundering caravans and civilians.

Moreover, the small states were not very peaceful with each other. They often went to war over women and livestock. It was also common for desperate foreign tribes to try to attack Qin soldiers' outposts on the border.

Aside from these smaller states, Qin's greatest enemy was the Xiongnu!

The Xiongnu were a large ethnic group numbering in the millions, and their territory was larger than the present-day Qin Dynasty. The Xiongnu were naturally fierce and were the Qin Dynasty's greatest foreign enemy.

Besides the Xiongnu, there were also other foreign tribes such as the Donghu, which were scattered throughout the border region spanning thousands of miles.

However, these things were like an untapped treasure to Han Chunming. After chatting with the old man, Han Chunming already had a plan in mind.

If you're going to venture beyond the border, experience the local customs and set a small goal: conquer a small tribe first.

Han Chunming returned to the inn and sat at a table in the lobby, ordering a pot of wine and two catties of braised beef from the waiter.

The Qin Dynasty prohibited the killing of cattle, but this was not the case here, because cattle and sheep were everywhere outside the pass.

Because the area was blocked by mountains and city walls, and the Qin state prohibited foreigners from entering the pass, only allowing a small number of merchants from outside the pass to trade.

Therefore, many domestic merchants could only use camels and horses to transport goods to trade outside the Great Wall.

Many merchants wholesale grains, household items, and even alcohol from the inland areas and transport them to the border regions to trade with people of different ethnicities.

Merchants then traded leather, horses, and even live cattle and sheep with the outside world, which made beef and mutton particularly cheap in Star City.

Han Chunming enjoyed the authentic braised beef and drank the local fruit wine, experiencing a unique sensation.

The inn is very busy, with many merchants staying there to eat, sleep, and replenish their supplies.

This kind of inn occupies a large area. The outside is for eating and resting, while the inside is where animals are kept. The inn is noisy and full of strange smells, which gave Han Chunming a headache.

Han Chunming finished his meal in a hurry and was about to go upstairs to rest when he suddenly overheard a group of businessmen chatting nearby.

A merchant who clearly appeared to be from another ethnic group ate naan bread, took a sip of wine, and shouted loudly.

"Have you heard? The Black Bear tribe has been wiped out!"

The merchant started the conversation, and someone quickly picked up where he left off.

"How could I not know? Didn't you see that the Black Bear Chieftain and his people were all taken to Star City? I heard there were several hundred of them!"

The crowd immediately clicked their tongues in disapproval, and an elderly merchant said with some regret.

"Two years ago, I traded several beautiful robes for over fifty pieces of cowhide at the Black Bear Tribe. Before I left, they even gave me two gemstones. I was thinking of going back to their tribe this year, but I never expected this!"

The old customer's words were echoed by several other customers, one of whom also said with a regretful expression.

"It's a real pity. The Black Bear Tribe is quite powerful in this area, and they're very law-abiding when doing business with us. So why did they suddenly invade our border this year?"

An old customer sighed and said.

"This is normal. The imperial court may be preparing to wage war against the Xiongnu and is raising funds and provisions. Recently, an order was issued that all registered non-Han tribes outside the Great Wall must hand over 20% of their cattle and sheep annually. Tribes without cattle and sheep must offset this with money."

The Black Bear tribe relied on a small salt lake for survival, and the imperial court's first target was their tribe. Forced into a corner, they had no choice but to rebel!

One of the merchants suddenly realized what was going on and nodded.

"No wonder! I was wondering why there were fewer and fewer good items being traded lately. It turns out the imperial court has taken them all!"

The old customer nodded solemnly and said...

"I think this place is about to become unsafe. After I finish this business trip, I'll take a few months off and then see how things go."

The merchants nodded in agreement, and one of the younger merchants asked curiously.

"What do you think the government will do with those people from the Black Bear tribe who were captured?"

The young businessman's question seemed somewhat naive, immediately eliciting laughter from several people, and one of them answered him.

"It's the same old rule: the old ones get beheaded, the younger ones get their faces tattooed, and they're sent to the border to build the Great Wall. The remaining women and children are sold into slavery. This has been the rule for so many years. Otherwise, where do you think the shady dealings in Star City come from?"

The merchants all let out lewd laughs that only men should have, making the young merchant feel a little embarrassed. It was his first time traveling this route, and he really didn't know about these things.

Han Chunming became interested after hearing their conversation.

Why don't we buy a few slaves to be our guides?

Otherwise, wandering around outside the Great Wall on your own without anyone to guide you is not a good idea.

After figuring it out, Han Chunming continued to stay at the inn, listening to the conversations of merchants from all over the country.

These topics have indeed enriched Han Chunming's knowledge considerably.

He also heard that three days later, the government would behead the chieftain and some members of the Black Bear tribe at the East Gate Market, and it was rumored that about a hundred people might be killed.

Han Chunming immediately became interested and decided to go and see what the commotion was about.

Three days passed in a flash. Han Chunming got up early and went to the vegetable market in the east of the city. From afar, he saw a large crowd of people watching the excitement.

Although it was called a vegetable market, it was actually just a large open space of several thousand square meters. The surrounding streets were all guarded by hundreds of armored Qin soldiers, and the area was solemn.

As the sun rose, a group of aliens appeared, their hands and feet bound by iron chains. This was the same group Han Chunming had seen that day, the Black Bear Tribe that the merchant had mentioned.

Han Chunming looked over there and quickly realized something was wrong. This group of people was not the hundred or so that the merchants had said, but at least four hundred, including men, women, and children, all of whom were being escorted to that open space.

Upon seeing the more than four hundred Black Bear tribesmen in the open space, the surrounding crowd of onlookers began to murmur amongst themselves.

Not long after, the chief executioner hurriedly arrived. He stood in the open space, his face solemn, and shouted at the onlookers around him.

"The Black Bear Tribe, an inhuman tribe, has intruded upon the borders of our Great Qin without cause. This is a serious offense against the might of Great Qin. The Prefect has decided to execute the entire Black Bear Tribe as a warning to others!"

Having said that, the chief executioner, without further ado, waved his hand, signaling the executioner to begin preparations.

Upon hearing their fates being decided, the adults of the Black Bear tribe roared angrily, while some children and women looked completely bewildered.

More than 400 people were prepared, along with eight executioners, each tasked with beheading more than 50 people. One can imagine the bloody spectacle that was about to unfold.

Han Chunming frowned as he looked at the group of people who were about to be beheaded. He was not against beheading; in the few months he had been in the Qin Dynasty, he had sent at least a hundred people away.

However, those people were mostly highway robbers, while of the more than 400 people in front of him, nearly 300 were women and children, and there were only about 40 or 50 adult men.

The Black Bear Tribe is a small to medium-sized tribe of more than 2,000 people. They occupy a small salt lake 60 kilometers outside the pass and have lived there for hundreds of years by making salt.

It was believed that the Black Bear tribe was born with extraordinary abilities, with most of its members being enormous in size and possessing immense strength. It was only through this racial talent that they were able to occupy a small salt lake for hundreds of years with just over two thousand people.

The Black Bear tribe was indeed different from the other tribes Han Chunming had seen. Their skin was somewhat reddish-brown, and their faces resembled those of Eurasian mixed descent.

That's not the key point. The key point is that most of this race, regardless of gender, are exceptionally tall. There are more than a dozen giants in this group who are over two meters tall, and most of the remaining adults are around 1.8 or 1.9 meters tall.

It should be noted that among the more than 400 people, there were only 40 or 50 adult men, and more than a dozen of them were giants over two meters tall, which is a high proportion.

Even those women and children were mostly tall, and Han Chunming felt as if he were looking at a group of Yao Mings.

Han Chunming wondered if this race might be a special race.

And this group in front of me is the last one on Earth?

Because in his later years, he had never seen a race with this body type, and it wasn't even recorded in history books.

These four hundred-plus people in front of them are the last bloodline of their race. Perhaps after they are killed, this group will completely disappear from the earth.

Han Chunming felt a pang of regret; should he try to save her?

After thinking about it, he finally shook his head. He was all alone, while there were at least five hundred armored Qin soldiers around him, each of whom looked exceptionally capable.

One to five hundred?

Challenging your limits? Just thinking about it is exciting!

Okay, he still didn't dare to go. Even if he saved them, how would he take them away?

He wasn't very familiar with this place, and with so much to eat, drink, and relieve himself, there was nothing he could do!

As Han Chunming was lamenting, the executioners were already prepared. A group of soldiers forced the Black Bear tribesmen to kneel down with their weapons and then began to behead them.

Many children and women were whipped in agony by the weapons, screaming in terror.

The group of adult black bears began to frantically pull on the iron chains binding their hands and feet, causing chaos in the scene.

Seeing that the situation was becoming chaotic, the chief executioner waved his hand, and hundreds of armored Qin soldiers raised their spears in unison. The four-meter-long spears gleamed coldly and were aimed at the Black Bear tribesmen.

The chief executioner waved his hand, and the armored soldiers were about to thrust forward, preparing to execute these people with spears and halberds.

At that moment, dozens of crossbow bolts suddenly shot out from the crowd of thousands of onlookers. The armored soldiers were unable to stop them in time and more than ten of them were shot dead.

Upon seeing the attack, chaos erupted at the scene, and the crowd that had come forward scattered in all directions.

Suddenly, a group of over a hundred people rushed out from the crowd. Most of them were dressed as merchants, each carrying a crossbow and a scimitar. They raised their crossbows and shot at the Qin soldiers guarding the area.

At first, quite a few Qin soldiers were indeed shot down, but these Qin soldiers, who had been stationed on the border for many years, had a much richer combat experience than expected.

Almost as soon as these men finished firing their first volley, some Qin soldiers raised their shields to block the Qin soldiers in front of them, while hundreds of Qin soldiers behind them, under the cover of their shields, extended hundreds of long spears and charged toward the crowd in unison.