Origin Paradise!

"The victor is king, the loser is villain; it's all about fighting to the death."

The regent's gaze was resolute. Without the field army, he would lose all hope of sweeping across the world and conquering the nine provinces. If he were to be defeated in this battle, living would be worse than dying.

"Is he really invincible? I don't think so."

Smoke and dust rose on the horizon.

"The Marquis of the Pacification Army has arrived!"

In the ranks of soldiers, someone couldn't help but shout.

"Heavily armored infantry, step forward! I am with you!" The regent rode to the front, having long since disregarded life and death for power.

Hundreds of ballistae were poised to fire, and soldiers were being sculpted, armored warriors stood in formation, and long spears formed a forest.

Suddenly, a black dot rapidly approached from the sky ahead.

Tens of thousands of fireballs suddenly appeared in the previously calm sky.

Before the army could react, the meteor shower, created by expending all its energy, plummeted to the ground.

In an instant, dazzling light rose from the earth, and a series of deafening roars, like thunderclaps, violently tore apart the army's formation. Thick smoke, carrying waves of heat, surged into the sky, and the soldiers' cries and shouts seemed incredibly weak in the face of the layers of explosions.

It was as if the entire earth was trembling. The shockwaves were like ferocious beasts, blasting everything around them. Countless soldiers were thrown into the air by this force and crashed heavily to the ground.

Dust filled the air on the battlefield, smoke billowed, and fires raged everywhere.

Shattered corpses and charred remains lay scattered across countless large pits.

In a single encounter, tens of thousands of people died.

The rebel army was routed without firing a single arrow.

Under the protection of the Grandmaster, the Regent rose up, his face covered in dust. His eyes widened suddenly as two skeletal giants, each a hundred meters tall, rose from the ground in the distance. The majestic city walls of the capital only reached the giants' knees. Including him, countless generals and Grandmasters who still had some fighting spirit were plunged into despair.

The Marquis who quelled the rebellion could not be defeated by force.

"The heavens are collapsing!" The Regent suddenly vomited blood uncontrollably. He reached up to the sky, his five fingers clenching tightly, his face contorted in agony, and then he collapsed to the ground.

"Your Highness, Your Highness!" The Grandmaster exclaimed in shock.

Chapter 349 Ascending the Throne

The army that was sent to suppress the rebellion was defeated.

Corpses littered the fields outside the capital.

Three thousand fierce iron cavalry charged back and forth, leaving behind fallen weapons and armor scattered for miles around.

The regent fell to the ground, but then struggled to his feet with the help of his two attendants. He did not flee; from the moment of defeat, his political life had already come to an end. For a usurper, there was no point in fleeing or not.

In the late afternoon, around 3 PM, the sun began to set.

Two thousand fierce cavalrymen dismounted and served as infantry, incorporating more than 30,000 defeated soldiers. By occupying the positions of squad leader and sergeant, they ensured control over the force.

Jiang He rode his horse into the city.

The 190,000-strong army collapsed, and the second-line troops defending the city had long lost their will to fight. The commander of the East Gate, the General of the Three Auxiliary Regions, led his men to surrender and respectfully welcomed the Marquis of Pingluan to the capital.

Chaos reigned in the capital. The army swept through the city like a sieve. The people and officials alike were extremely wary of the army's entry. Since ancient times, the identities of soldiers and bandits have always been easily interchangeable. When the regent entered the court, it was inevitable that there would be a lot of turmoil.

A vicious soldier wielding a thorny, poisoned spear rushed over to report: "Your Majesty, the commanders-in-chief of the Three Auxiliary Regions and the newly recruited officers wish to receive a reward."

With three thousand riders traveling at breakneck speed through the night, it was naturally difficult for them to carry gold and silver rewards with them. Their request for credit was actually an attempt to plunder.

The General of the Three Capitals considered himself a loyal subject who opened the city gates, and the slightly excessive rewards were customary. At the same time, it was also a way of taking sides and disgracing himself. With the evidence of his troops looting on the day the capital fell, the emperor could deal with him at any time.

Jiang He rode his horse along the Vermilion Bird Avenue and, upon hearing this, calmly said, "A bunch of defeated and surrendered generals dare to make demands?"

"Fifty thousand surrendered troops will immediately surround the capital. You will lead a thousand fierce knights to plunder officials and merchants, collect silver, and accompany this commander of the Three Auxiliary Regions. Since you are willing to hand over your incriminating evidence, you might as well be more straightforward, take the blame, and become a loyal subject from now on."

"Understood." The evil soldier left, carrying a thorny, poisonous spear.

Jiang He remained calm. Ultimately, he didn't need the help of the Three Auxiliary Generals to enter the city, but looting the silver was indeed necessary.

In ancient times, the annual income of the Ming Dynasty court at the end of the dynasty was several million taels of silver. The last emperor collected "donations" from his officials, but unfortunately, very few responded. His father-in-law gave him a meager ten thousand taels to fool him.

When the general surnamed Li captured the capital, he found only 170,000 taels of gold and 130,000 taels of silver in the national treasury. However, the subsequent looting and massacre of all the officials in the city eventually yielded 70 million taels of silver, a difference as vast as heaven and earth.

Jiang He surveyed the bustling capital city. The figures might vary slightly, but the corrupt practices at the end of the Daqian era should be similar. If he wanted to secure his throne, he urgently needed to solve the economic problems.

An army of 50,000 surrounded the imperial city.

The magnificent city before us is called Qingdu City. It has four gates in the east, west, south and north. It has a history of more than 800 years in this world. It has gone through five dynasties and gradually became a symbol of imperial power. The architectural complex centered on the three palaces is magnificent and has a long history. More than 100,000 eunuchs and palace maids lived there.

There was no need to attack; the fall of the capital meant that the situation was hopeless. Although the imperial city was impregnable, there had never been a precedent in history of relying on the imperial city to suppress a rebellion. Three of the four city gates were opened from the inside, and the middle-aged eunuch Wei Wanzhong, who had arrived earlier, led the surrender.

"The entire army shall set up camp and hold firm."

A military order was issued, leaving the soldiers puzzled, but the officers of the fierce soldiers carried it out strictly. Before the Great Khan's orders, whether they understood them or were correct was of no importance.

Jiang He waited, her eyes now completely white. If the Jianyan Emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty knew what was good for him, he should commit suicide with dignity; otherwise, he had no reason to treat the former imperial family members well.

At the same time, messengers rushed to deliver secret letters. These were all influential figures in the city who cared about their reputation, and quite a few decisive individuals even knelt down outside the military camp.

"Your Majesty, someone from the Five Pecks Dao Palace claims to be the Supreme Elder and requests an audience."

"Xuan."

Unlike others, this Supreme Elder is a grandmaster of the Dao Palace and the imperial court, supported by the entire nation of Daqian. In the end, he was able to select a few heroes who could transform the Silver Will. He was the biggest source of confidence for the Five Dou Dao Leader to still dare to go north for a decisive battle during the dangerous period when the Grand Eunuch was about to pass away.

"I've met the Marquis."

The Supreme Elder entered gracefully, dressed in a simple Taoist robe, with a five-colored lotus crown on his head. His hair was white, but he was still vigorous. In the Silver Age, the lifespan of ordinary beings was extremely long compared to that of ordinary people.

Jiang He had no interest in stalling and directly stated his conditions: "From now on, the Five Dou Dao Sect will remain the state religion, but the sect leader will need to serve as the deputy sect leader of the Martial Sect and provide the imperial palace with elixirs with all his might."

"Let me be frank from the outset: the biggest reason for making concessions is that I dislike trouble. When I feel that making concessions will cause even more trouble, then the Five Dou Dao Palace can disappear."

The Supreme Elder remained calm in the face of danger and said, "Your Majesty, I dare to offer my advice: you only need to do five things, and the chaos in the capital can be quelled overnight. The Five Dou Dao Palace is also willing to cooperate fully to hold the enthronement ceremony as quickly as possible."

"Firstly, the eldest son of Emperor Jianyan can be granted the title of Duke of Anle. This seven-year-old child can be raised outside the capital, making it difficult for people to rebel under the banner of the Great Qian Dynasty. Furthermore, the former dynasty's eldest princess can be taken as a concubine, thus eliminating all potential threats. However, the eldest princess will not be allowed to have any children in the future."

"Secondly, if the only daughter of the Dao leader is made empress, all the elders and disciples of the Dao Palace will be convinced. I am willing to personally enter the city and kill Jianyan to show the Dao Palace's obedience to Your Majesty."

"Thirdly, pardon the He family, the Hong family, and the Yan family. Although all three families have been wiped out, it can still appease the people's hearts."

"Fourth, Your Majesty has many powerful generals under your command. You can send an envoy to the north to slaughter the barbarians. While the heroes of the Nine Provinces are fighting for supremacy, Your Majesty is willing to serve as a bulwark for the border. With righteousness in hand, all the heroes pale in comparison."

"Fifth, if Your Majesty is invincible in the world, you can challenge the Lord of Donghai City in the capital, thereby establishing your reputation as the most outstanding warrior in the world."

The Supreme Elder bowed to his knees and solemnly said, "Your humble servant is not well-versed in government affairs, but humbly offers Your Majesty five strategies for securing the country."

Jiang He pondered, "Although the Great Qian Dynasty is finished, there are still quite a few capable people."

"I have never heard of two suns in the sky at the same time."

"I will immediately kill Jianyan."

The Supreme Elder left quickly. The new emperor wouldn't act until he saw a clear benefit; he needed to eliminate Jianyan first before he could have anything to say.

Normally, a regicide is intolerable to the monarch, but the Marquis of Pingluan was clearly an exception, as he possessed extraordinary military strength.

As for the succession to the throne, the legal and ethical difficulties have been greatly reduced compared to five years ago. The regent has been plotting this matter for years, and most of the related obstacles have already been removed.

……

June 14th, the first year of the Jianyan era.

The regent amassed an army of 190,000 men in an attempt to attack the capital. The Marquis of Pingluan led 3,000 cavalry on a thousand-mile raid, defeating the enemy in a single battle and quelling the rebellion instigated by the regent and others.

However, during the battle, the son of the Duke of Yan misjudged the situation and believed that the cause was lost. He entered the palace to request an audience and coerced the emperor to prove his loyalty by dying, so as not to betray the prestige of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Emperor Jianyan committed suicide.

The Duke of Yan exterminated his entire clan, including three members.

The Marquis who quelled the rebellion took control of the capital.

The emperor's eldest son ascended the throne, abdicated in favor of his sworn brother, and was demoted to Duke of Anle, and lived in Zhuquefang in the capital for generations.

Because a country cannot be without a ruler for a day, the powerful officials of the court, led by the Supreme Elder of the Five Dou Dao Palace, jointly submitted a memorial requesting that the Marquis of Pingluan inherit the throne. After declining the throne three times, the Marquis of Pingluan finally agreed.

The new emperor ascended the throne and granted amnesty to the world.

The He, Hong, Yan and other high-ranking families were exonerated.

With the unanimous consent of the Emperor and the Cabinet, Jiang Danglu is hereby appointed as the Governor-General of Yizhou and Qingzhou, in charge of all military and political affairs. The 140,000 troops in the two regions are reorganized into the Yizhou Army and the Qingzhou Army, respectively.

After 20,000 infantrymen from Yizhou entered the capital, they joined forces with 50,000 surrendered troops to reorganize the Imperial Guard, with Jiang A'er serving as its commander, responsible for the defense of the three passes of Jingzhou.

Jiang A was promoted to Grand General of Anbei, in full charge of border defense, and was to launch a northern expedition against the barbarians on a chosen day.

Changsun Jie, the garrison commander of Tongguan, and Shan Zhu, the general of the Three Auxiliary Regions, were transferred to the central government and appointed as the left and right vice ministers of the Ministry of War, respectively.

The Grand Secretary Yue and the Minister of Rites remained unchanged. The Prince of Anbei was sent to the capital to serve as the Minister of Personnel. Zhu's eldest son entered the cabinet as the Minister of Revenue. In addition to the Six Ministries, a Ministry of Military Affairs was established, with Jiang A'er, the commander of the Imperial Guards and the emperor of Emperor Wuzong, serving as its Minister, holding the rank of second grade.

Zhuang Ya, a close attendant of the new emperor, served as the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, making her the most powerful figure in the inner court. Wei Wanzhong was promoted to Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, whose status and power were second only to the Grand Eunuch.

Aside from personnel changes, the new emperor made Dao Shou's only daughter his empress, took the former dynasty's eldest princess as his concubine, and had Lady Le'an, Lady Zhu, Lady Changsun, Lady Shan, and others take over the inner palace. Lady Hong was buried with the rites due to a concubine.

On June 17, Dongqian was established.

The new emperor immediately changed the era name to Shengwu and proclaimed it to the world.

……

In the first year of the Shengwu era, at the imperial palace.

Jiang He sat on the jade platform in front of the main hall of Qingdu, from which he could overlook the entire capital. The brocade red robe that belonged to a marquis had been replaced with an imperial dragon robe, embroidered with a five-clawed golden dragon.

The white-clad female official stayed close by, occasionally feeding him a few bites of fruit. Although the Director of the Directorate of Ceremonial held a lowly but powerful position, he was in fact the representative of imperial power.

Old Black has been teleported here using the ability of his animal companions. He is now the governor of two states, but in reality, the Demons and the Dawn Legion do not need a real leader.

Wuhe stood on his shoulder and reported the situation: "Boss, there were twelve rebellions in Qingzhou, and they have all been suppressed so far. A total of 40,000 people have been executed. The blood-red short spears are standing in the governor's mansion, just like in Yizhou, and can be moved there at any time."

"The estimated number of martial arts manuals from Qingzhou and Jingzhou is 370,000. They will be delivered to the palace by tonight at the latest. After looting the capital, we will obtain 33 million taels of silver and 200 tons of gold, which will fill the national treasury."

"Of the nine provinces under heaven, we have already occupied three. This mission of unification is a sure thing. In addition, the challenge has been sent to Donghai City. The battle will take place on Zhuque Avenue in the capital. Our opponent is at the peak of the Silver Realm."

Jiang He nodded slightly. In the entire world, the only people he cared about were his own family and countless martial arts techniques. Becoming the emperor was merely for the sake of the main quest and to speed up the progress.

"Aya, summon the Supreme Elder."

"Ok."

Zhuang Ya turned and walked to the edge of the jade platform, where several female officials were waiting. She only needed to pass on the orders and did not need to actually leave the city to go to the Five Dou Dao Palace.

A quarter of an hour later, the Supreme Elder entered the palace.

When he met the emperor, he secretly glanced at the three generals beside him. The young girl in white held great power, the middle-aged man commanded an elite army of 140,000, and the demon crow at the end seemed to be the prime minister.

"Your Majesty, all the Five Dou Pills accumulated by the Dao Palace are here." The Supreme Elder took out a jade box from his sleeve, inside which were two hundred crystal-clear pills, and a rich fragrance immediately filled the surroundings.

Jiang He took the pill box. With the knowledge and skill of an alchemy master, a safety check was no problem. After the Flying Bird Legion's investigation, the Five Dou Dao Palace had no secrets left.

The Five-Peck Pill is the most outstanding elixir of the Dao Palace, originating from the first Dao leader, a formidable figure who was very likely a master of the Silver rank.

Each Five-Peck Pill requires 9,999 kinds of medicinal materials. The number of materials is extremely large and of great significance. After calculating the labor, transportation, storage and fire loss, the cost of one pill is about 50,000 taels of silver.

The problem is that this thing cannot be bought directly with money. The scale of medicinal materials is limited, and once the inventory is insufficient, the purchasing power of money will be severely reduced.

In theory, the two hundred pills in the hands of the Supreme Elder were worth ten million taels of silver. Now, they were being taken out as both the Empress's dowry and a political contribution. In recent days, the plundering and killing by the evil knights had made the old man feel like he had a thorn in his side.

[Name: Five-Peck Elixir]

[Category: Functional]

[Quality: Rare]

[Effect: In addition to Charm, it enhances the four basic attributes to a certain extent. When the potion is fully active, it increases each attribute by one point. It is estimated that one hundred high-quality Five-Pill Pills will be needed (this pill only works on beings below Silver rank/attribute values ​​below 22)]

[Note: The secret recipe is passed down orally from one Daoist leader to another and from one Grand Elder to another, which is the reason why the Grandmasters of the Five Pecks Daoist Palace have been passed down from generation to generation.]

Jiang He opened the pill box, and Lao He and Wu He each took half of the two hundred pills. After taking the pills, the latter basically reached the silver baseline, while the former was expected to be four rounds short.

The Supreme Elder was heartbroken when he saw the Emperor decide on the allegiance so quickly that his eyes twitched slightly.

"The Dao Palace can still refine a few more batches."

"Your Majesty, at most one batch. The Five-Peck Pill requires a large number of medicinal materials, and the weight of each is staggering. If we want to continue making medicine, Your Majesty's strong support is indispensable. The soil and water in Jing and Qing prefectures are suitable. If we simply change the rice to medicine throughout the region, it will be a harvest every four months. Your humble servant will certainly not disappoint Your Majesty."

The Supreme Elder bowed his head deeply.

Jiang He remained silent. Getting the two states to switch from rice to medicine might be even more difficult than unifying the nine provinces. Even if they didn't plant medicinal herbs, switching to rice, which clearly had a higher yield, seemed logical, it was actually an extremely difficult task.