I am a living immortal.

The capital was in turmoil. The common people were completely unaware of what was happening, their attention riveted by the two wars raging north and south. The Xiongnu had become enraged by the actions of the Imperial Preceptorate in the north, and this time, their fury was truly raging. The royal court issued a direct order for all major tribes to assemble, with hundreds of thousands of cavalrymen heading straight for Youcheng.

After more than half a year of repairs, Youcheng was already impatient. A war was imminent between the two sides. One side had been holding back for a whole winter, and the other was furious. The two sides collided like a meat grinder, opening a bloody curtain for the year.

This time, both sides really got serious about it.

The major tribes were going all out, as they had received word from various sources that the Han Dynasty was truly determined to sweep them into the dustbin of history. There was no room for negotiation, and if that were the case, the tribes would not hold back, as the last person to hold back had already moved their capital.

That's right, I'm talking about the Baiyue. This small nation, originally located in the jungle, was razed to the ground by the Han Dynasty's sky warships and artillery fire. The Han army rushed straight to the Baiyue's homeland with overwhelming force.

At first, the Baiyue thought this was just another demonstration by the Han, demanding more tributes. Before the Baiyue leader could negotiate, he was caught off guard. Even a fool would know that a serious move was in the works, and they rushed back to defend themselves, gathering their troops.

But it was too late. The Han had captured three cities in a row, encircling the Baiyue capital. If not for a minor incident in the final battle, the Baiyue would have been destroyed. However, this was all within the Han's expectations. After all, no matter how small the Baiyue was, it was still a nation, with many years of history. And in the jungle, the witches were much more difficult to deal with than the shamans.

If shamans are the followers of the Beast Lord, then these witches are the inheritors of blood and faith. It can be said that they themselves are the people who accept the faith, but they are connected by blood ties.

These witches do not need to study like shamans. The moment they become witches, the knowledge passed down for dozens of generations will manifest in their blood, and their own strength will also undergo earth-shaking changes.

The Han army had seen these sorcerers, and they were no longer human. Both men and women possessed stunningly beautiful faces, with deep, golden-red eyes that resembled divinity. Their physiques were also distinct from those of ordinary humans. Each one stood roughly three meters tall, and every movement exuded a mysterious aura. Their secret techniques could even control the power of heaven and earth, and behind them condensed a halo of divine power.

These powerful and mysterious beings were even able to summon zombies that had been buried underground for millennia to serve them. The zombie tide, combined with the mystical laws of heaven and earth, blocked the Han army and artillery, which were their pride.

This allowed the King of Baiyue to escape with most of his men.

While this was within the Han's expectations, the root cause lay in their underestimation of these witches. They suffered a loss in the early stages of the battle, missing a crucial opportunity. This was due both to the unexpected strength of these witches and the Zhennan Army's hasty response, seeking to catch the enemy off guard. While this outcome was relatively insignificant in the grand scheme of things, it nonetheless marked a defeat for the Han, with three aerospace warships shot down.

This caused the original casualty ratio to soar to the sky, and this was under the cover of several generals.

It can be said that this was a huge failure.

Although the emperor didn't fly into a rage, he did rebuke them a few times. The pride and complacency that came from relying on a powerful army made the Zhennan Army feel ashamed in front of their colleagues.

Far from being discouraged by this setback, the entire army was determined to fight back. If they met again, they would definitely teach these witches a lesson.

Unfortunately, the Zhennan Army probably won't have such an opportunity.

Because this group of witches evacuated after covering the retreat of the king, but they met a Taoist priest on the way.

Originally, these witches didn't take it seriously.

But the Taoist priest, standing alone, blocked their path. He held his sword in one hand, his eyes, though pale, still fixed on them. His strange gaze, a look that made even the witches' hair stand on end, shuddered. It wasn't the look of a person, not even a living creature, and it offended these newly victorious witches.

When these witches were about to take action.

The Taoist priest then said leisurely, "What the Supervisor said is true. You are indeed amazing. You are a good material."

Before the witches could react, a golden mist emanated from his body. Tens of thousands of soldiers and horses quietly formed a presence behind him, flanked by towering divine generals. While not as numerous as the deputy supervisor's numerous deities, it was still enough to terrify the witches.

A battle happened quietly and ended unnoticed.

The king, who was about to reward these sorcerers, waited and waited, but none of them returned. It wasn't until several days later that he realized the sorcerers might have met with disaster. The king was horrified, wondering how the Han had managed to eliminate these powerful sorcerers so silently.

Fear inevitably rose from the bottom of his heart, and he felt that this time the Baiyue might really be destroyed.

In reality, these sorcerers weren't dead, but lay buried in the Imperial Master's Mansion for study by a group of Taoists. This unique bloodline inheritance led these Taoists to a new approach: using bloodlines to connect the Heroic Spirits, allowing them to pass down and communicate with each other as a family, essentially creating a pantheon of gods, both large and small. This might solve the initial problem of insufficient strength. After all, if one's own Heroic Spirit wasn't strong enough, what about adding siblings, parents, grandparents? Would the combined power of so many Heroic Spirits be enough? Would it be enough?

A real-life version of "ancestors bless you."

These witches died a worthy death, but that is a story for later.

However, the problem they encountered was that the Zhennan Army had discovered that the Imperial Master's Mansion had taken advantage of their inattention and invaded the battlefield, seizing a group of witches without informing the Zhennan Army. This caused the Zhennan Army to become excited for a while, and then they tragically discovered that their imaginary enemy had already been killed, leaving them in a moment of confusion. This incident was a violation of discipline at best, and a major blow to the morale of the army at worst.

The Zhennan Army severely reported the Imperial Master's Office to the court.

The Imperial Master's Office is becoming more and more arrogant. One day they will lose all respect for the law and must be severely punished.

The emperor thought about it and it made sense, so he discussed it with Chen Dong and Su Can, asking them to be more restrained and at least inform the other party before taking action next time.