Chapter 481 - The White Lion Great General, We Tadra Khonglo!

"400,000 taels of gold to buy out the production of your Jadecut Sword Shop for the next three months. This is the schematic. Forge the items according to the instructions. No mistakes are permitted!"

As the horse galloped away, a heavy bag of gold flew through the air, through the door of Jadecut Sword Shop, and thumped onto the floor of the reception hall.

The impact of the bag was so great that the entire sword shop quivered.

"400,000 taels?!"

In just a few a moments, the people inside the building came out and stared in shock at the heavy bag on the floor.

Jadecleave Shop, Jadesteel Shop, Rending Metal Smithy… on the same day, all the famous sword shops and smiths of the capital received Wang Chong's generous 'reward'.

Both sword shops and sword smiths were actually extremely limited in the amount of profit they could make each month. Unlike Wang Chong, they couldn't make just one sword that would then sell for tens of thousands, a hundred thousand, or even hundreds of thousands of gold taels.

In truth, in the entire capital, probably only Wang Chong was capable of such a feat.

400,000 taels already far surpassed the yearly revenue of these top-notch sword smiths and sword shops. Though they had initially been hesitant, how could they remain so after Wang Chong delivered all this gold to their doorsteps?

In this short span of time, all the sword shops and sword smiths made their decision. In practically one day, Wang Chong had gained the ability to decide what all the sword shops and sword smiths in the capital could forge.

Starting from now, Wang Chong had exclusive use of these sword shops and smiths. They would only make items for Wang Chong, would serve only him, would give him all they produced!

Such a thing was unprecedented, but now, it had all become reality!

……

Through the use of gold and the Wootz Steel weapons, the entire capital began to operate around Wang Chong and the Wang Clan like some massive machine.

Thick smoke poured out from various places in the capital as the sword shops and sword smiths closed their doors to other customers and began to forge weapons for the same person.

And the clans of the capital were dispatching their experts to the Wang Clan. Wang Chong gave Li Siye, Wei Anfang, and Zhao Jingdian the responsibility of handling these experts.

Strength was not the only thing needed to make guards and experts from the great clans into soldiers that could work together and crisscross the battlefield. Strict training was also necessary.

However, unlike hired experts, the experts and guards from the clans had at least some military experience. It was for this reason that Wang Chong had prioritized gathering guards from the great clans first.

"Everything has been set in motion. All that's left is myself…!"

Wang Chong stood on a high pavilion, the gusting winds ruffling his robes. Surveying the tiled roofs and towers of the capital, he saw columns of smoke floating into the sky while the sounds of hammering could be heard from every direction.

And in the distance, he could hear the neighing of warhorses. Wang Chong felt like he could see the hundreds of guards training in the distant Deflecting Blade Manor under the direction of Li Siye and Zhao Jingdian.

War had always been an enormously expensive venture. Whether in manpower, food, or war implements, it put forth costs that no ordinary clan could bear.

Wang Chong had already invested everything he could, including the Wootz Steel swords and the money he had gotten from auctioning off the spirit vein. The gears were already beginning to spin. Wang Chong was deeply aware that what awaited him next was a gruesome war!

It wasn't only the soldiers that needed to prepare for this war. He had to as well!

With a thought, Wang Chong immediately communicated with the Stone of Destiny in his mind. When he had attempted to kill An Yaluoshan and killed Ashina Sugan, he had obtained 200 points of Destiny Energy. With the addition of the Destiny Energy he had gained from killing the Youzhou soldiers, he had accumulated a total of 269 points.

He could have left this Destiny Energy for when the next level of rewards in the Stone of Destiny opened, but the campaign in the southwest was imminent. He no longer had the time.

Only by making the exchange now would it be of any help in this war that was about to begin.

Moreover, although the first level of rewards wouldn't be as impressive as the next layer, Wang Chong knew that one of the rewards would be of great assistance to him.

"Stone of Destiny, exchange for three Stellar Energy Piercers!"

Wang Chong sent this thought into his mind.

Rumble! His mind brightened, golden light bursting out as the energy of three Stellar Energy Piercers came out of the Stone of Destiny and flew into Wang Chong's dantian.

Bzzt!

Wang Chong's already formidable energy quickly increased as the one Stellar Energy Piercer suddenly became four. The chance of the Stellar Energy Piercer activating also raised from 5% to 20%. With every five attacks, there was a chance of one piercing through Stellar Energy.

After exchanging for three Stellar Energy Piercers, Wang Chong also rose in power, going from True Martial realm Tier 3 to the brink of True Martial realm Tier 4.

I'm only missing out on that last step!

With this thought, Wang Chong opened his eyes and turned to look at the four pills in his hand. He had gotten these pills from Six-Fingered Zhang.

'Money can make even ghosts push the millstone.' The selling of the spirit vein had granted Wang Chong an enormous sum of money, simultaneously raising Wang Chong's status in the hearts of the palace alchemists.

This time, it was the palace alchemists who had come to find Wang Chong, taking the initiative to increase his privileges. The number of pills he could exchange for each month had been raised by one.

Gulp!

Wang Chong raised his neck as he swallowed the four pills. For a moment, it felt like fire was running through his veins, but after a few moments, the pills were expended, and Wang Chong had successfully broken into True Martial Tier 4…

……

Boom!

Thunder crackled over the distant west. A massive city loomed over this vast land, and above this city, black clouds gathered, with silver snakes of lightning shuttling through them.

Across from the city was a land that reached into the clouds. It felt like a massive wave that could slam down at any moment and wipe everything away.

This was the Tibetan Plateau!

The distant Longxi felt the threat of this land, the threat of this empire, more than any other part of the Central Plains.

Although they were neighbors, this lofty plateau was like another world to the Central Plains.

Those highlands nurtured countless warriors. Even though dynasty after dynasty of the Central Plains had defeated them, they had never been able to completely destroy the threat.

The high altitudes were like an invisible barrier that made it difficult for the empires of the Central Plains to fully utilize their strength.

Time after time, the cavalry would gather on that plateau and charge down into the Central Plains, plundering and killing. Then, before the army could arrive, they would retreat back into the Tibetan Plateau!

To the people of Ü-Tsang on the plateau, the Central Plains were defenseless… until that city was built, and that person appeared.

Big Dipper City!

Geshu Han!

This newly constructed city was like a gigantic nail hammered into the western border. It was an existence that held down Longxi and suppressed the cavalry of the Ü-Tsang Empire.

And Great General Geshu Han, who had risen like a comet, had swept over the western border, becoming the Ü-Tsang Empire's most feared existence.

'When the seven stars of the Big Dipper shine up high, Geshu comes at night with his saber. No prying shepherd or horse dares to cross Lintao.' This folksong was not only known in Longxi, but also in the Tibetan Plateau. Everyone knew of it, and everyone trembled in fear at it.

And it was precisely Geshu Han's existence and the nail of Big Dipper City that led to the extremely famous saying, 'The world is rich and populous, but nowhere surpasses Longyou1.'

Amidst the peals of thunder and the low clouds, fierce neighing tore through the sky. It had come from above the clouds, from the top of that towering plateau.

It took only a few moments for a dark and bloodthirsty figure to appear at the edge of the plateau, and on that figure's back was a large banner flapping in the wind.

"Enemy!"

Almost as soon as that figure appeared, a lookout on the walls of Big Dipper City gave a loud shout of warning.

Over the many years spent guarding Longxi's border, these soldiers had become extremely familiar with Ü-Tsang cavalry. That armor of theirs was so heavy that it seemed to sink into their bodies. Even from a distance, they were very easy to recognize.

But this was not the cause of his concern. Ever since their Great General had established Big Dipper City, the Ü-Tsang Empire had been dealt defeat after defeat. It had been a long time since any of them dared to engage in a frontal assault under the eyes of Big Dipper City.

Such circumstances were extremely unusual.

Boom!

The entirety of Big Dipper City came to life, thousands of soldiers surging out and swiftly forming ranks.

Despite their numbers, there was no sense of panic in Big Dipper City. Even when they were rushing to their posts, they still followed a strict discipline and order.

It only took a few moments for the massive Big Dipper City to fall silent once more. All the soldiers were standing ready at their positions, an intimidating aura hanging in the air.

The city was so quiet that it seemed to be empty.

At this moment, the long hours of training in the Big Dipper Army were on full display. It had only taken a few seconds for the entire city to break out of its normal routine and enter a battle-ready state.

But though the city was quiet, outside the city, it was getting louder and louder.

Rumble!

A massive sound like the raging of the sea came from the high plateau. Although it had started soft and almost inaudible, it had gradually become louder and louder, resounding through the air… By the time it was close, everyone could hear the thousands of horse hooves pounding the earth, mixed with the clattering of armor.

"It's the Ü-Tsang army!"

On the city wall, the Big Dipper Army soldiers began to pale. They had stood sentinel in Longxi for many years, so they were used to fighting with Ü-Tsang.

But there was clearly something different about this battle.

From the ferocity of the gallop, the army that had appeared on the Tibetan Plateau far surpassed those of the past.

The quaking of the earth meant that this army consisted of at least 100,000 soldiers.

"Look over there!"

Somebody shouted and pointed.

Under countless eyes, a massive banner, perhaps a hundred feet tall, suddenly unfurled itself at the edge of the plateau.

This banner flapping in the wind seemed to have been dyed with blood, and on this bloody background was a massive three-headed white lion, its teeth bared. Even at these distances, it was possible to see it clearly.

"The three-headed white lion banner! It's We Tadra Khonglo2!"

The soldiers paled even further, and even the officers of the Big Dipper Army began to appear nervous.

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1. Said quote is from Sima Guang's Zizhi Tongjian. 'Longyou' and 'Longxi' both refer to the same place, a location west of the Long Mountains. 'You', 右, here means 'right', and 'right' meant the same as 'west', 'xi', 西, to the Chinese. This area served as a major nexus for the Silk Road, a likely reason for its wealth during the Tang Dynasty.↩

2. Historically, We Tadra Khonglo was a general of the Tibetan Empire who also served as the highest-ranking minister in the Tibetan government. He served under the Tibetan King Me Agtsom. He was executed in 728, which the Chineses histories allege to be because a Tang Dynasty general spread rumors that We Tadra Khonglo was conspiring with the Tang.