After the fairy disappeared

Chapter 2598 Mirage
“In recent years, Bega has even stationed troops in six vassal states, which has indeed helped them to forcibly quell the situation,” Sun Hongye said with a smile. “Whether it’s a symbolic garrison or not, it is still Bega’s army, the real deal. Whether it’s immortals, demons, or other foreign forces, they should think twice before taking action and just give up.”

"Baling thought he had the gold medal in his hand, so he dared to be fearless in the face of Shen Guocai."

He Lingchuan asked him, "In your opinion, will Beijia eventually make a move?"

Sun Hongye thought for a moment: "The intensity of the war between Shen and Baling is escalating rapidly. If Baling continues to suffer defeats and Bejia does not step forward, Bejia's prestige will inevitably be damaged."

He Lingchuan laughed; he could, of course, distinguish between "taking action" and "stepping in."

The majesty of a great power cannot be challenged, but Bega's desire to intimidate Shen and force it to back down involves more than just military means. Despite the tense relationship between the Kshatriyas and the Lingxu Clan, Shen and Bega have a large trade volume; Bega is even Shen's largest export market.

This is not hard to understand. Bekaa is the richest country in the world today, with incredibly strong purchasing power. Making money from it is always easier than making money from other countries.

Shen Kingdom still has many special products.

Economic sanctions would be a powerful tool.

Despite He Chunhua's repeated and strict prohibitions, officials and wealthy merchants from Shen State have continued to acquire property in Beijia for many years—Beijia's properties are both valuable and profitable.

Because of these vested interests, they also exert a strong influence on the Shen Kingdom's court.

The mere mention of the name "Beijia" is enough to exert a powerful deterrent effect on any country in the world—except for the Mu Kingdom and Cangyan—and it will make good use of this deterrent effect.

"Increase export aid to Shenguo. Their customized special weapons, war puppet parts, and fasting pills were originally supposed to be shipped in a month and a half, right?" He Lingchuan instructed, "Work overtime and ship them within five days."

Originally, the Bigu Pill was reserved for cultivators and immortals. Later, various countries discovered that it was even more useful in the military because it was a so-called high-energy food, extremely filling. Consuming just one small pill could keep an ordinary person from eating for three to five days. Of course, soldiers expend a lot of energy during physical activity, but it could still sustain them for two days.

There are only two drawbacks: one is that it is expensive, and the other is that you can only take one pill every twenty days. Taking too many pills will cause abdominal pain and constipation.

So, wealthy and powerful figures like Bega simply designated it as standard issue for their armies. Other countries followed suit, equipping their elite forces with it.

"Yes." With the Emperor's order, the many weapon workshops and harbors in eastern Cangyan were about to be bustling with activity again. "Do you think the Shenba War won't be over so quickly?"

“The Kshatriyas also support many forces in the human world, the most successful being the Shen Kingdom. The Naraku Heaven has allowed He Chunhua to enjoy a good life for so many years, and now that he has this opportunity, he should naturally repay the Kshatriyas for their efforts.” He Lingchuan pondered, “The Shen Kingdom does not yet have the strength to challenge Bega, but if it beats Baling to a pulp, the Kshatriyas’ prestige in the human world will definitely increase significantly; and for He Chunhua, the alliance to which the Shen Kingdom belongs has recently absorbed the forces of several other countries, and it needs to demonstrate its strength to gain the respect of the masses; and precisely because it is right next to Bega, the Shen Kingdom is eager to defeat a long-established and powerful country with a long history, such as Baling, to flex its muscles and thus alleviate the pressure brought by the geopolitical crisis.”

He knew exactly what He Chunhua was thinking: the stronger he demonstrated, the safer Shen Kingdom would be, and the more support the Kshatriyas would give to Shen Kingdom.

He Lingchuan could also deeply understand He Chunhua's helplessness, because that was all he could think.

“So—” he sighed softly, “Yes, since all the parties involved are willing to continue fighting, this war is probably not going to end anytime soon.”

The long-awaited rapid revival of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, which humanity had been anticipating for thousands of years, has finally arrived. However, it has not brought peace to the world, but rather intensified changes between nations.

This is an era of great strife.

Just then, a palace servant entered and knelt down to report: "Your Majesty, a mirage has appeared in the western sky, shrouded in a thin mist."

"Oh? Now?" He Lingchuan closed his book, put down his pen, and leisurely walked out of the imperial study.

His study had a very wide view from the Chixiao Golden Hall; looking west, one could see everything and reach the horizon.

As the sun began to set, the western sky, already a vibrant golden-red hue, was a breathtaking sight with its rising clouds and rosy hues. However, just as the palace attendant had predicted, a large mirage appeared in the sky.

Sun Hongye followed him out, looking surprised: "Huh? It's actually a big city! It's magnificent, but I can't tell what kind of city it is."

This is also a large city; roughly estimated, its area is almost the same as Ju City. The buildings in the city are densely packed and imposing.

The city walls were majestic and thick, seemingly even thicker than those of Jucheng. Soldiers patrolled back and forth on the city gate towers, which Sun Hongye could clearly see from the ground.

Not only can the Crimson Heaven Golden Palace see this spectacle, but all the people of Ju City who look westward can also witness this magnificent sight.

However, the Nine Nether Emperor remained silent, his expression unusually complex.

Just then, the city gates in mid-air slowly opened inwards, and troops walked into the city from outside. He was very familiar with their uniforms.

Sun Hongye asked in surprise, "This isn't a city in our Cangyan, is it? The soldiers' armor doesn't even look like it."

Why would a mirage appearing in Ju City select a scene outside of the Gold Plains?
He Lingchuan remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "No."

Then he turned to Sun Hongye and said, "You can go down now."

"Yes."

The conversation came to an end, and Sun Hongye immediately took her leave.

He Lingchuan turned around and took only two steps outside when the Haoyuan Golden Mirror appeared out of the void.

He stepped into the mirror and vanished from the spot.

……

He Lingchuan reappeared in the mirror, now on the west gate tower of Ju City.

Ju City was a bustling metropolis on the Gold Plains, its main road teeming with traffic day and night. But now, the merchants and well-traveled residents of Ju City below the city gates stopped in their tracks, shading their eyes with their hands as they gazed westward:
"What is that? There's a great city in mid-air."

"There was even a dragon on the city gate."

The dragon suddenly moved, slithering along the tall city wall. This scene immediately drew gasps of surprise from the common people.

"It's alive! That dragon is alive!"

The gatekeeper rushed over and bowed to He Lingchuan: "Your Majesty!"

The soldiers were already used to the Nine Nether Emperor's sudden appearances and disappearances. The Emperor truly possessed extraordinary abilities.

He Lingchuan tossed him a crystal about half a finger's length long, pointed to the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, and casually instructed, "Go and inform Prime Minister Du that the Earth Mother has returned. Tell him to send people to transport supplies out of the city."

As the master of the Panlong Secret Realm, Ju Cheng was naturally aware of the approaching Earth Mother.