"Urgent message!"
"Urgent message!"
"Urgent message!"
Several days later, nocturnal hawks and eagles took flight, their dark silhouettes streaking across the night sky as they delivered messages to the capitals of all the warring states.
"What? Jun Asura laid siege to the God of Martial Arts. He relied on his own strength to slay that monster and claim the title of Martial God."
Receiving the news delivered by a nocturnal hawk's letter, Ei Sei was stunned, unable to believe what he was hearing.
Though he had believed Jun might succeed, Ei Sei had never imagined it would be like this. The combined armies of all the warring states were on their way, and the experts from Zhao loyal to the King were no easy foes.
In the royal council, Ei Sei found himself unable to react to the news.
Was it good or bad?
On one hand, if he granted Jun all the lands he demanded, it would create a region even he had no authority over, essentially carving out part of Qin to become a new state.
But on the other, he would gain an ally as powerful as a man now regarded as the new god of martial arts.
"We can't let an opportunity like this slip by. The information we purchased also states that over ten thousand lives were buried that night and that the current martial god commands an army of ten thousand highly trained assassins."
Ei Sei had already poured immense effort into deploying the entire strength of Qin's forces to shield him from the armies en route. If he could gain Jun's support in this war, he could ensure they would at least hold their ground, transforming the coming conflict into a war of attrition.
Jun had single-handedly wiped out over ten thousand soldiers, along with the very man Aoki couldn't defeat!
"How did this man manage that?"
Ei Sei sat on his throne, clutching the raven-sent letter. His mind was in turmoil, too shocked to speak.
These were thousands of Zhao's soldiers and the God of Martial Arts himself! Nearly all the soldiers who perished that night were among Zhao's finest.
In terms of army strength, Jun's force of ten thousand assassins could now face an army of thirty thousand with ease!
Jun had defeated Hou Ken and thousands of elite soldiers on his own.
Ei Sei could hardly believe it!
It was beyond inconceivable, especially knowing Jun had not yet reached adulthood, where his strength could peak.
…
In a city near the Wei border, Shin had concealed several letters for Ei Sei, though more news was on its way.
"No way…" Kyou Kai, who had been in the area clearing her mind and talking with others, received a monthly report detailing recent global events more precisely than other sources.
"What's going on?" Shin asked as he approached the commotion unfolding around him.
"The god of martial arts is dead! A massive number of Zhao soldiers were killed, and a new King of Assassins has emerged!"
Shin gasped, his face a mask of shock.
"Who was it?"
"Jun, the same Jun we met years ago, who was then just an infantryman like the rest of us."
When Zhao's reinforcements arrived, they were met with corpses strewn across the mountain. Human and horse bodies lay scattered everywhere, cut in half. Even the sand on the mountains was stained red. The ground was covered in cracks, and large rocks lay shattered. The scene was hauntingly tragic.
"I should have been the one to kill him." Shin muttered angrily, withdrawing to avoid causing a scene.
It wasn't a matter of prestige, but because, as someone close to Aoki, he believed it was his duty to avenge him, not Jun's, who had no quarrel with Hou Ken.
Kyou Kai remained silent, equally stunned by the scene described in the letter. This battlefield style was precisely the one Jun enjoyed excelling in.
Shin had entered the army, yet he had not yet commanded a true battle, but his fighting style already showed signs of the Invincible Great General.
Even so, he was far from ready to face the God of Martial Arts.
Even Jun, with his brutal combat style, had sustained grave injuries; if Shin were to face that man now, he would likely perish.
"The tides of the world are shifting, and I need to return." Kyou Kai murmured, determined to stand by Jun's side, recalling the promise they had made.
She didn't want to fall behind—not when Jun needed her by his side to create the world they both envisioned.