Chapter 2683

This remark, if heard by others, would surely leave them baffled, but Mu Di understood it at a glance:

"You sought me out—specifically, what do you intend to do?"

Even without the aid of the Heavenly Demons, Beijia remains the most powerful nation in the world, by no means an opponent easily defeated. Cangyan must actively engage the world and resist Beijia, which cannot be done without Mu Guo's support and wholehearted cooperation.

"For now, it's about logistical coordination," He Lingchuan said sincerely, "Since Cangyan is dispatching troops, it means long-distance warfare—en route and during combat, logistical supply and right-of-way passage are not as convenient as in the homeland, so we need to coordinate with you and Lingshan."

Since Cangyan has decided to join the battle, the matters requiring coordination are indeed numerous. The two sovereigns must first establish the broad framework; the details will then be further discussed by the ministers below.

This conversation continued until midnight.

Only when the moon had set westward did the Wu Huanzi little person finally turn into a mass of foam in the inkstone.

The dialogue ended.

He Lingchuan rose, stretched, moved his neck, then opened the window to breathe in some fresh air.

Tonight I have no time to return to the sleeping palace—I'll just sleep in the imperial study.

It's still more than an hour until dawn—hurry up and sleep! I still have to return to the Panlong World to lead troops in battle.

Jiuyou Dadi thus spent another ordinary busy day.

￥￥￥￥￥

The war between Mou Song and the Po Lang Fan Yao State, set against the vast backdrop of human battlefields ablaze with war, was originally merely a medium-scale conflict, far removed from the major powers, and had not yet drawn attention like the war between Shen Guo and Ba Ling.

No one was optimistic about Mou Song State.

Mou Song State's ability to repel three invasions by Po Lang State was already remarkable. Yet its actions instead provoked Po Lang State into a fury that knew no bounds.

The fiercer the resistance, the harsher the enemy's retaliation.

Once Po Lang State truly committed itself, everything Mou Song State did would amount to nothing more than a dying struggle.

The Fourth Mou-Po War began, only a few months after the previous one. Nearly all onlookers believed this war held no suspense, and Mou Song State's capital palace would soon fly the Po Lang State banner.

Indeed, this was initially the case: Mou Song troops, under the ferocious assault of the Po Lang army, suffered repeated defeats and retreats, managing only three effective counterattacks before being pushed back four hundred li within days. Although Mou Song State's territory is not small and it possesses depth, if this continues, the time of its national extinction is imminent.

Just at this perilous moment of impending doom, the Mou Song capital suddenly issued a peculiar edict, directed both at its citizens and at the world:

Effective immediately, Monarch Pang Yuan Dao accepts the investiture of Jiuyou Dadi, venerates Cangyan as sect master, Mou Song State becomes a vassal, observes vassal rites, and presents tribute at court every three years.

Now this is something: Po Lang State hasn't even conquered Mou Song State, yet it has suddenly become a vassal territory of Cangyan.

Moreover, this decree was announced amid the fierce fighting between the two sides. Po Lang State had not yet reacted when the vital energy on the opposing troops' bodies changed color—shifting from pale yellow to deep red in an instant.

The Po Lang troops immediately felt that the enemy had grown tougher, stronger, and more resistant to divine abilities and techniques—making them harder to defeat.

This single development threw the Po Lang army's offensive rhythm into disarray.

For over twenty years, the laws of vital energy have also been in flux. Now, the suzerain state may allocate part of its vital energy to vassal states, even enabling real-time regulation, just as it does within its own borders; conversely, if a vassal state's vital energy grows steadily and its people revere the suzerain state, the latter likewise gains corresponding benefits.

There is another important point:

When the suzerain state's army dispatches reinforcements to a vassal state and enters the vassal's territory, it may also use vital energy as if it were domestic.

In fact, this transformation of vital energy has long had precursors. Setting aside other matters, the relationship between Beijia's vassal states and Ling Xu City is essentially one of vassalage and core suzerainty: the rulers of the vassal states must pay homage to Ling Xu City, regularly attend court and offer tribute, and join Ling Xu City in dispatching troops during its foreign wars.

Only this time have the laws governing vital energy become clearer, with further relaxation of geographical restrictions. After all, Beijia's vassal states are tightly clustered around Ling Xu City, and people usually regard them as a single entity. Mou Song State, however, is truly distant from Cangyan, spanning an entire ocean.

At that time, the Po Lang army was fiercely attacking Mou Song State's military stronghold, the Hui Xuan Fortress, and had already been held at bay by it for four days.

This location is easy to defend but hard to attack; in the previous war, Po Lang State had besieged Hui Xuan Fortress for a long time without success, whereupon it withdrew its troops.

This time, Po Lang State came fully prepared, having opened with a double advantage, and especially because Po Lang Wang Wang Lord Zhongsun Pei, upon hearing that Mou Song State had joined Cangyan, flew into a rage and urgently ordered a fierce assault.

Po Lang State attacked with great effort, yet Cangyan, right under its nose, stole the home base—Wang Lord Zhongsun Pei was naturally extremely displeased. Furthermore, Cangyan's sudden move might conceal further tricks, so Po Lang State must hurry to destroy Mou Song State, establish a fait accompli, lest prolonged delay bring unforeseen complications.

Yet this Hui Xuan Fortress is indeed formidable—even with Po Lang Wang personally supervising the assault, the Po Lang army launched attacks for five consecutive days without capturing it.

The two sides exchanged moves in offense and defense, the number of tactics unknown, growing ever more treacherous, yet Mou Song State identified each one and, gritting its teeth, held firm.

The several immortals and great demons accompanying Po Lang Wang into battle proved ineffective, for Mou Song State somehow found two immortals to assist in defense, making its guard exceptionally strict.

At this point, the problems of the Po Lang army began to surface:

Po Lang State is primarily aquatic; many powerful water-dwelling monsters skilled in combat cannot come ashore, and even those aquatic beings that can land require humid air—yet Hui Xuan Fortress lies in Mou Song State's interior, a rare dry region receiving rain no more than ten times a year.

So arid that aquatic beings struggle to breathe. Thus, Po Lang's spellcasters must resort to large-scale wind-summoning and rain-invoking arts, occasionally bringing heavy rains to the army to moisten the air.

But experts have long heard the saying: "Steal the wind, not the moon; steal the rain, not the snow."

The noisy splashing of rain disrupts the external environment, creating great difficulty for the army's defensive guards.

Of course, Po Lang's army does not overly concern itself, for they are the hard-charging attackers; even if Mou Song State takes advantage of rainy nights to sortie and harass, it amounts only to "harassment" and will not inflict fundamental damage on Po Lang's main camp.

In fact, they should have been concerned.

That night's downpour was especially fierce, turning the ground beneath the city into impassable mire. Po Lang Wang believed the spellcasters had overused their rain-summoning divine abilities, summoned them forward, and scolded them severely.

With such heavy rain, advancing became impossible.

The spellcasters, scolded and unable to protest, could only say: "Perhaps, maybe, possibly it was simply destined to rain here?"

Hui Xuan Fortress is arid, but not barren—it receives at least ten or so rains annually. Moreover, according to locals, when it does rain, it usually pours: depressions in the sandy ground can become lakes within five hours, and rivers flow freely and wildly.