Chapter 10: Expansion by Forty Thousand Troops

Just as Zhakhan was about to climb down from the wooden barricade, an explosion thundered behind him.

“No!!” Looking down, Zhakhan saw the great wooden wall shattered, and he, along with countless pieces of timber, was being hurled into the air.

Sensing an overwhelming pressure, the tiger-headed general tried to leap away, but halfway through his jump, he was yanked backward, utterly out of control.

“Ah!” Turning his head, he caught sight of the enormous beast’s gaping maw, and even this fearless commander was seized by terror.

Zhabulei landed, and after a single glance backward, he immediately fled.

“No—no—it’s over—it’s over—”

“Run, run!” “Help me, save me!” Warriors, dragged backward by an invisible force, screamed in agony.

They watched helplessly as over a thousand soldiers dissolved into nothingness. Hiding in a corner, the high priest finally grasped the sincerity of the Northern King’s intentions.

“No! Stop! We surrender! Surrender at once! Northern King, we surrender! We surrender!” With tears streaming down his face, the high priest rushed toward the carriage, bowing again and again.

“We surrender, we surrender!”

“Kneel, surrender now, hurry!” The great chieftain, seized by gravity, shouted at the top of his lungs. He did not want to die, nor did he wish to have even his hide devoured.

“My lord, they’re surrendering!” Opening the small window of the carriage, Jingni was moved with pity.

Lin Shu nodded, and with a single roar from the dragon-horse, the pull of gravity vanished instantly.

“Ah! I’m alive, I’m alive!” One commander wept with joy and sorrow; just a moment more and they would have been devoured by this demonic carriage.

Zhabulei, who had run more than a hundred meters away, looked back to see that the monstrous carriage had finally stopped, and at least two thousand warriors were now kneeling.

The warriors of various tribes glanced at Zhakhan and, accepting their fate, began to kneel as well. Most of the commanders and chieftains had already surrendered at the mouth of the valley, and the remaining warriors had no heart left to resist or seek death.

“Heh, the gods! The Southern Alliance has fallen.” Zhabulei Khan was also forced to kneel by his guards, which he did willingly enough—if he weren’t afraid to die, he wouldn’t have run so fast.

When Zhu Ba led his troops in, the one hundred thousand people in the valley were all kneeling in surrender.

“Zhu Ba, take over command of the Blue Braves!” Zhu Ba immediately nodded. He wanted to smile but could not; the king’s overwhelming power had left little room for their own valor.

As their own tribesmen entered the valley, the high priest and others finally breathed a sigh of relief. They did not fear these wild kinsmen, but the bone-devouring demonic carriage terrified them. He dared not recall the horror of just moments before: the tiger-headed general’s face twisted in despair, his massive body shrinking rapidly, until even bone, flesh, and hide were utterly consumed! The memory replayed in his mind, lest he believe that the first warrior of all, the tiger-head, was but a figure from his dreams.

“Greetings, Great King of the North!” As Lin Shu stepped down from the carriage, the high priest saluted.

“Greetings, Great King of the North!” “Greetings, Great King!” The surrounding commanders and chieftains all followed suit, and before long, the entire valley echoed with their cries of allegiance.

They had been tamed—completely, utterly tamed.

Even the warriors of their own tribe began to shout, “Great King! Great King!”

Hearing the cries of over a hundred thousand people, Jingni felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction. Though she was not a king, she could now taste the fatal allure of wielding the power of life and death.

Without needing the translation of Mind’s Shadow, Lin Shu now understood much of the Snowland tongue and could speak some as well, but he chose to use his native language nonetheless.

“Very well! You may all rise. Jingni, go comfort them, and first have everyone place their pelts in the center of the open ground.” Though she was a swordswoman, Lin Shu believed Jingni was no less talented than any great figure of history. At the very least, she could now converse freely with the snowland savages.

Jingni nodded and floated down from the carriage.

“High Priest, have everyone return to their places and bring all the commanders and chieftains to me.” Glancing at the distant cavern, Jingni walked over, unwilling to stand in the cold winds.

The high priest, delighted, immediately stood. “As you command. Everyone, rise! Commanders and chieftains, let us go together!”

“Yes!” All were overjoyed, eager to distance themselves from the terrifying carriage.

Soon, Zhakhan led the others to Jingni.

“Commanders, this is the king’s consort, and also the high chieftain of the Snowland tribes,” Zhu Ba explained to all.

Sensing her authority, the commanders dared not underestimate her, especially with hundreds of armored warriors nearby. Even if this goddess had no power at all, they would not dare think of betrayal.

“Former Khan Zhabulei, pays his respects to the high chieftain.” Zhakhan led the salute, the title of khan now gone for good.

“Greetings, high chieftain!”

There was only a small stone dais inside the cavern, and Jingni reluctantly stood upon it, not wishing to speak with her head held high.

“My lord Lin Shu is the chosen of Heaven. The Great King of the North has come to Snowland not for slaughter and conquest, but because he cannot bear to see the people suffer from cold and hunger, nor to watch the desert tribes tear each other apart. Thus, by Heaven’s command, he has come to unite Snowland and the entire desert, so that all tribes may live in peace, free from cold and hunger.”

Such lofty words Zhakhan did not believe, but the demonic carriage he did.

The desert! The king’s ambition was not limited to Snowland alone! The high priest understood much at once.

Whether they believed it or not, the pretense of a just cause was something Lin Shu and Jingni had agreed upon.

After some questions, Jingni gave the order: “Zhabulei, gather all the pelts and bring them to the divine carriage. Don’t worry, you’ll soon get new fur coats.”

“Commanders, rest assured—the fur coats we wear were given by the divine carriage,” Zhu Ba confirmed.

Seeing the beautiful, well-fitted coats of the snowland warriors, the others immediately understood; no wonder they looked so impressive!

Once the pelts were transformed into coats and bedding, the hearts of all one hundred thousand people were completely won over. When Lin Shu handed out iron tools and weapons to the chieftains, even the most dispirited Zhabulei submitted wholeheartedly.

After two days’ rest, Lin Shu began formal arrangements.

“Zhu Ba, you and your men will winter here. Choose twenty thousand warriors to join the army for training. In the spring, I’ll march east to the sea.”

Zhu Ba was already familiar with the king’s ways. “Will you remain in the south, sire?”

“I’ll be leaving in a few days, and will return after some time,” Lin Shu replied. He still needed to go fishing and build in the eastern mountains, and could not afford to linger.

Receiving his answer, Zhu Ba said no more. “As you command, my king.”

Lin Shu had forged many weapons in the eastern mountains, but only Zhu Ba’s men had two thousand sets of armor and helmets.

“Chieftain Zhabulei, hand over all surplus horses to Major Zhu Ba. I will leave ten thousand steel sabers, ten thousand steel spears, ten thousand iron-string longbows, and a hundred thousand arrowheads for the southern alliance.”

“As you command, my king. With these thirty thousand divine weapons, the south will be able to repel the Xiongnu’s incursions.” Zhabulei was confident that twenty thousand of his men could defeat fifty or sixty thousand Xiongnu, especially since the Xiongnu could not bring their full force to bear.

Zhu Ba was tempted, especially by the ten thousand iron-string bows, but dared not ask.

Lin Shu understood his thoughts, but currently had no more to give. “Rest assured, Zhu Ba. In time, I’ll send another ten thousand longbows and ten thousand steel crossbows.”

“Thank you, my king.” Zhu Ba silently wished time would pass more quickly.

After lingering in the valley for a few days, Lin Shu prepared to return. The valley was not far from the southern shore of the North Sea Lake. Lin Shu left some fish, nets, and ice-breaking hammers for Zhu Ba and the others to fish for themselves, knowing that with twenty thousand more mouths to feed, the southern alliance’s food would soon run short.