After the fairy disappeared

Chapter 2700 An Unprecedented Grand Scale

The territory of Bega remained largely unchanged during the more than two hundred years of the founding emperor's reign, but under the second emperor, it expanded to an area equivalent to the combined territory of the two vassal demon kingdoms, Mountain Lord Kingdom and Mountain Feather Kingdom. This territory remained unchanged until He Lingchuan transmigrated to this world, when it expanded again on the eve of the gods' descent due to the active external conquests of the vassal demon kings.

Because his ruling foundation was very solid, and the concentration of spiritual energy in heaven and earth was far less than in later generations, the second Demon Emperor was almost able to rival the Heavenly Palace. As far as He Lingchuan knew, he even executed no less than a hundred Heavenly Palace Lamp Bearers, Ritual Envoys, and officials of various ranks for various kinds of dereliction of duty, negligence, and crimes. In the Demon Emperor's own words, he was cleaning house for the Heavenly Palace.

The Heavenly Palace tolerated it at the time. However, unconfirmed and forever unconfirmed rumors circulated later that the Demon Emperor's death was related to the Heavenly Palace; otherwise, with the power of a great nation, what resources couldn't it have, and it could even eat Xuanjing like candy? Even the Qingyang National Preceptor lived to be two hundred years old; the lifespan limit of the Dragon Clan is far greater than that.

Compared to the second Demon Emperor, the third Demon Emperor in later times reigned for less than forty years and had a temperament quite different from his father. He Lingchuan was somewhat disappointed in him, but still held certain expectations for the second Demon Emperor.

"And the second thing?"

"The Demon Emperor has issued a series of decrees, demanding that all vassal demon kingdoms immediately dispatch powerful armies to the Panlong Wasteland battlefield." Wen Daolun's relaxed expression vanished instantly. "Lingxu City has even compiled a list, detailing exactly which armies each vassal demon kingdom must send, such as the Azure Elephant Army of Baoxiang Kingdom, the Colorful Army of Shanjun Kingdom, the Green Hill Army of Yegan Kingdom, and the Dry Land Legion of Eling Kingdom, etc., basically encompassing all of Bega's powerful troop types. General, this is not good news for us."

He Lingchuan walked to the edge of the sand table and looked at it with his arms crossed.

Compared to Bega, Panlong was merely a tiny territory. Although the Holy Venerable Lingxu had ordered that Panlong be taken down at all costs, Bega's efforts in the war over the past two years had not yet reached the point of "reckless abandon." It wasn't that the Demon Emperor insisted on going against the Heavenly Demon, but rather that war is inherently a complex art, not something that can be forcibly accomplished by setting a fixed objective.

The essence of the phrases "haste makes waste" and "things don't always go as planned" is understood far more deeply by the Demon Emperor, the Holy Venerable Lingxu, and the Great Emperor of the Nine Netherworlds than by ordinary people.

"When was the last time Bega sent out a lineup like this?" It's practically a deluxe, upgraded All-Star lineup.

“Last time?” Wen Daolun pondered for a few moments. “It seems to have been unprecedented. Even the massacre of the Yuan Kingdom wasn’t this large-scale.”

“The Yuan Kingdom is located within Bega, and that war lasted for three years. Bega couldn’t even muster this kind of equipment.” He Lingchuan curled his lip. “Do you think Bega can use this to deal with Panlong?”

After receiving this intelligence, Wen Daolun's heart was ice-cold. Now that General Huyi suddenly told him that the situation was not so bad, a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders.

These words wouldn't have the same effect if spoken by someone else.

Besides Zhong Shengguang, General Huyi was the person he trusted most. Zhong Shengguang even told him privately that General Huyi had a better strategic vision than he did.

After calming himself down, Wen Daolun couldn't help but laugh at himself: "I was actually fooled. What the general said is absolutely right. Bega's idea of ​​concentrating the elite forces of the twelve demon kingdoms to deal with Panlong is fundamentally untenable."

Decades ago, when the Yuan Kingdom rebelled, the Heavenly Demon also discovered that the Great Fanghu was in the hands of the Yuan King. Wasn't he still unable to command these twelve elite forces? What's so special about this time compared to the past? Moreover, Panlong is quite a distance from the Bega homeland. The journey for the various armies to reach the Panlong Wasteland is not short at all, as can be clearly marked on the sand table.

The territory of Bega itself is too large. It is located in the northwesternmost part of the Demon Kingdom, the Treasure Elephant Kingdom. For its Azure Elephant Army to reach the Panlong Wasteland, it is no exaggeration to say that it is separated by thousands of mountains and rivers. Moreover, although elephants have the ability to migrate long distances, their speed is really not fast. It takes more than three months just to travel.

"The twelve vassal demon kingdoms have always been wary of each other, since Lingxu City rarely interferes in their infighting. In the past, they all kept their most elite troops within their own borders, just in case." He Lingchuan planted flags on the sand table, some yellow and some green. "Look at the Demon Emperor's decree this time; there are clues. These vassal demon kingdoms are all part of the Heavenly Palace faction, which I marked with green flags. The Demon Emperor ordered them to send the elite of the elite, the so-called royal army, to attack Panlong. Now look at the yellow flags; these vassal demon kingdoms are all part of the Demon Emperor's faction. What kind of troops does the Demon Emperor want them to send?"

Wen Daolun had already come to his senses, and his mind was working quickly. After thinking for only a few breaths, he suddenly realized: "Although they are also the main force, they are not the elite force, and the number of troops they have designated to go to war is less than half that of the Heavenly Palace Party."

Therefore, the Demon Emperor ordered the twelve vassal demon kingdoms to send troops to Panlong, but the Heavenly Palace faction wanted to send out all of the royal army, while the Demon Emperor's faction only needed to send a portion of its main force to make up the numbers.

"What else could it be?" He Lingchuan laughed. "The Demon Emperor is using the pretext of the Western Expedition to try and transfer all of the Heavenly Palace Party's elite troops away. His next step is to take action against the Demon King. If I were the Demon King, I would also be terrified."

Wen Daolun nodded repeatedly: "Last time, when the giant ape legion of the Xuluo Kingdom was transferred to the front line, the eldest son of the Xuluo King almost lost to the second son. This is a vivid and fresh example, reminding all the vassal demon kingdoms that they must leave enough strength to protect themselves."

“Although the Demon Emperor has issued the decree, it’s hard to say how many of the Heavenly Palace faction demon kingdoms will comply. Panlong will certainly face increased pressure, but not to the point of having to confront the elite forces of all twelve demon kingdoms simultaneously.” He Lingchuan deduced, “On the contrary, Bega will definitely be in turmoil because of this. Obeying the king’s orders and sending reinforcements is the duty of the demon kingdoms. They are attacking Panlong, which the Heavenly Demon has strongly ordered to be captured. They have no legitimate reason to refuse Lingxu City. The demon kings have their own difficulties and can only try to find ways to shirk responsibility and delay. But since the Demon Emperor has taken this step, he will not allow them to cheat. So the game between the two has already begun.”

Will the Heavenly Palace faction and the Demon King hand over the royal army to save his life, or will he shirk his duty and defy orders?

Wen Daolun warmed himself by the fire and rubbed his hands together: "Right, right, I remember there's a clause in the laws of Bega that states if a vassal state refuses to obey the military orders of Lingxu City, or refuses to comply through excuses or rebellion, Lingxu City can send troops to directly suppress it!"

The fact that the Demon Kingdom did not accompany Lingxu City on the expedition is a grave crime, tantamount to treason.

(End of this chapter)