The demon general looked at the envoy and said, “The thirty thousand miles of the desolate north are ours. In addition, you must offer us yearly blood offerings.”

What “blood offerings” meant was self-evident.

It was none other than countless human civilians.

The envoy trembled as he spoke. “How many people do you need?”

The demon general stared at him and sneered. “You should ask that child how many he can give.”

The envoy fell silent for a moment. In truth, this condition had already been discussed once before his arrival. The court had long understood what the demons wanted. So at that time, the court officials had already decided to agree.

Of course, the young emperor had initially been firmly opposed.

But he was still young. Faced with arguments of righteousness and ancestral legacy, he would not be able to hold out for long.

Moreover, perhaps deep down, he was also inclined toward agreement. It was just that as emperor, he was unable to say many things out loud.

The envoy said, “Then allow me to return and consult His Majesty. We will give you a satisfactory answer as soon as possible.”

The demon general said nothing. He merely waved his hand, then picked up a piece of human skin from the ground and draped it over the envoy, laughing loudly.

The envoy trembled all over from the overwhelming smell of blood, but he did not dare resist. He simply retreated.

He walked out draped in human skin, every step filled with nervousness. Compared to the stench of blood, what made him even more unbearable was the fact that he was not treated as a human being at all.

But in this world, perhaps no one could still call themselves human.

They were blood offerings, pigs and dogs, weeds beneath notice.

Chen Chao watched as the envoy, wearing human skin, left the main tent and walked out of the demon army camp. He said nothing.

Lu Ji said, “He is also very pitiful.”

Chen Chao did not speak. He simply turned and walked toward the south.

This place made him feel sorrowful just looking at it. That sorrow was difficult to describe, it was an overwhelming bitterness, because he could only watch. Apart from watching, he could do nothing else. Such pain could only be understood by those who had experienced it themselves.

......

......

The envoy returned to the new imperial capital, and the imperial court quickly convened a court session. The officials, who had been anxious all this time, finally let out a sigh of relief. Since the demon race was willing to negotiate, that was the best possible outcome.

As for how great a price had to be paid, it did not really matter.

At the very least, the country was preserved, and their lives were preserved.

Those who would be sacrificed had nothing to do with them. Their own families and friends could still live well in this world.

So it was destined that they could not truly empathize with others.

This court session was never about whether they should do it, but about how much they should give.

Finally, after the officials’ arguments, the matter was settled.

The envoy knelt on the ground and said to the young emperor, “Your Majesty, for this mission, could someone else be sent in my place?”

He knew the infamy attached to him could never be washed away, and he could accept that. But he could no longer endure the humiliation he had suffered among the demons.

The young emperor looked at him, his eyes devoid of emotion. “Since you have already gone once, you are familiar with the matter. Clearly, no one is more suitable than you.”

The officials also spoke up one after another, persuading him. Their reasoning was simple, if this man did not go, then one of them would have to.

And clearly, no one was willing to do such a thing. No one wanted to leave such a reputation for themselves in the historical records.

A scholar must have integrity.

It was somewhat laughable.

Thus, under the shared will of the officials and the emperor, the envoy set out once more, heading north again.

But in a certain commandery city in the south, news of this had already spread, and so a protest led by scholars broke out.

The leading scholars surrounded the local government office, loudly shouting that the thirty thousand miles of the desolate north must not be ceded to the demon race.

Of course, what they knew was still limited. The matter of sending their compatriots as blood offerings to the demons year after year was the greatest secret of the imperial court, no one dared to reveal it.

Inside the government office, the local magistrate coldly waved his hand, sending the constables out to disperse the scholars. But they refused to leave, and so they were beaten with sticks. Cries of pain echoed continuously through the streets.

Yet compared to the cries of the people in the north, these cries seemed somewhat insignificant.

Lu Ji said, “These scholars still have some backbone.”

Chen Chao remained silent.

Lu Ji looked at Chen Chao. By now, he no longer knew what this young man was thinking. He seemed to have grown increasingly silent, carrying a certain indescribable presence.

Chen Chao turned and walked away.

Lu Ji followed and said, “What happened in those years, no one wished for it, but no one could do anything about it.”

Chen Chao looked at Lu Ji and said, “If the cultivators from the foreign lands had acted, far fewer people would have died.”

Lu Ji said, “What they pursue is eternal life, the Great Dao; naturally they would not appear here, nor are they destined to do anything.”

Chen Chao said, “I know.”

Lu Ji said, “Generation after generation, they have always been like this. After this, you probably shouldn’t hold any hope either.”

Chen Chao did not speak.

Would it be the same?

Probably not.

Because at this time, there was no Zhu Xia, no Yun Jianyue, and no Yu Xiyi.

Of course, most importantly, at this time, there was not even him, Chen Chao.

But now there was.

Chen Chao said, “Let’s go look at something else.”

Lu Ji asked, “What else do you want to see?”

Chen Chao said, “Let’s see those who truly have a backbone.”

......

......

The Great Jin Dynasty was destined to be nailed to the pillar of shame. Although many people knew that things turning out this way had never been their intention, they were just helpless.

Sometimes, helplessness itself was a fault.

The peace talks still went through. The Great Jin ceded thirty thousand miles of the desolate north, using the flesh and blood of countless compatriots each year in exchange for peace, but in doing so lost the people’s support. That young emperor also lost his ambition from then on. He began to indulge daily in alcohol and pleasures, and finally died in the imperial palace at the age of thirty.

The new emperor likewise had no ambition, and was even more incompetent. Before long, chaos spread across the land again.

Rebellions broke out everywhere, beacon fires rose on all sides, and the Great Jin Dynasty finally reached the brink of collapse.

A new dynasty was established upon the ruins of Great Jin, but when facing the demon race in the north, they were equally helpless. That humiliating treaty was not torn up, and continued to be maintained.

The lives of the common people were just as bitter. That era likewise had no vitality. Everyone seemed like walking corpses.

And so time passed for a long while.

Once again, beacon fires rose across the land.

In some place in the south, a young man joined a rebel army because he could not get enough to eat. Within a few years, he became its leader.

After that, his power continued to expand. Later, with the support of certain powerful clans, he finally overthrew that dynasty and established a capital city in a grand and mighty city.

That young man was named Chen Lin. The dynasty he founded was called Great Liang.

Later, that young man came to be known throughout the world by another title: the Great Liang Founding Emperor.

After becoming the ruler of the world, the first issue he faced was an extremely difficult one.

That was whether to honor the treaty signed between the previous dynasty and the demon race.

At that time, a crowd of court officials gathered in the imperial city. In the great hall for deliberation, the young man, dressed in a brand-new imperial robe, looked at the assembled officials and asked, “What do you all think?”

A minister stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, a new dynasty has just been established, and everything is waiting to be restored. If we now engage in a great conflict with the demon race, it would absolutely not be a good thing for us.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, this is not the time for such actions. If Your Majesty insists on tearing up the agreement, then perhaps the realm will collapse immediately.”

The court officials all spoke one after another, urging the young man not to act on impulse.

That young man shook his head and said, “We don’t think that’s the right way. We cannot live like this. If we do, then Great Liang will be no different from the previous dynasty, and everything we do will have no meaning.”

After saying this, Chen Lin waved his hand and said, “Pass down Our decree: from this day forth, we will no longer offer blood sacrifices to the demon race. Form the frontier army, and be on guard against the demon race heading south at all times!”

The young emperor’s resolve left no room for anyone to argue.

But everyone knew that if the demon race chose to head south at this time, they would certainly be unable to stop them. The one sitting on the throne might well become nothing more than a passing figure.

Yet it seemed luck was on the human side this time. The demon race happened to be in internal turmoil and had no mind to concern themselves with human affairs, giving Great Liang plenty of time. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Thus, Great Liang built that Great Wall.

From then on, it began to resist the demon race’s southward advance.

Lu Ji sighed, “Good fortune. Otherwise, it would have been very troublesome.”

Chen Chao looked at that spirited young man and said, “Perhaps some people are destined to have a bit of luck.”

That young man was his ancestor. The Chen Family’s backbone and blood ran from him all the way down to the present Chen Chao.

Lu Ji said, “It seems that all of you carry a certain spirit that others don’t have.”

Chen Chao smiled and said, “Perhaps that’s exactly why Heaven chose for this world to bear the surname Chen.”

Lu Ji did not know what to say.

Chen Chao cupped his hands toward Lu Ji and said, “Senior, your tea is very good.”

Lu Ji shook his head and said, “I only find it bitter.”

Chen Chao gently exhaled a breath of turbid air and said, “After bitterness comes sweetness.”

Then the young man, standing within this great hall, stretched slightly.

Above the great hall, high in the sky, wind and clouds were already surging.