Chapter 432 : The Season of Harvest (4)

A ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍few days after news arrived that the fresh recruits gathered in Gansu had finished their training and were being dispatched to their respective units, another event came knocking on Il-mok's door once again.

It ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍was new to him, but it was the kind of thing he was slowly getting used to.

"Left ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍Guardian, a group called Heavenly Yang Sect from Guangxi Province has arrived to join our ranks."

Independent ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍martial artists were traveling from all over the continent to pledge themselves to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult just as the Battle King Jeok-ri-gang had done a few days prior.

***

Starting ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍from Gansu, the propaganda flyers and posters had spread outwards to Xinjiang and Qinghai, down through Tibet and northern Sichuan, and all the way to Shaanxi. From those places, copies began circulating again, and it wasn't long before the numbers swelled to something staggering.

That massive wave of leaflets and posters kept pushing further before spreading to every corner of the Central Plains.

Nanning, the Provincial Capital of Guangxi.

"Hm? Never seen this one before."

A middle-aged man who'd left his house at the crack of dawn to set up his morning stall stopped in front of a sheet of paper pasted to a wall and tilted his head.

Out of curiousity, he stepped closer to get a better look and immediately recoiled his body before shaking his head from side to side.

The paper was covered in crude drawings directly mocking and profaning the Imperial Family. Terrified that someone might have seen him looking, he walked past it as though he hadn't noticed a thing.

But as he hurried down the street, he quickly realized that the single poster was just the beginning.

Everywhere across the streets, sheets of paper and wooden boards and scraps of leather were strewn about and every last one of them was covered in words and drawings depicting the Imperial Family's crimes.

It was the work of the Beggars’ Gang and the local branches of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

Since the vast majority of the common people did not know how to read in the first place, they usually passed by without recognizing what it was. And even if they could read, they pretended to be blind to the flyers and posters out of fear of punishment from the authorities.

But just because you pretend you didn't see something doesn't mean the words vanish from your head.

"Hey... did you see the posters this morning?"

Gossipers and tavern drunks couldn't help but whisper about the shocking accusations printed on the leaflets and posters, and the rumors spread like wildfire.

Of course, it was all strictly contained within small circles; the commoners were still too paralyzed by their fear of the authorities to do anything more.

"We shouldn't just be all talk like this. Shouldn't we take action too? We can't live like this for the rest of our lives."

"Have you completely lost your mind?! You want to stage an uprising? Against who?!"

"Who exactly are you so afraid of? The local constables and the imperial troops have already all marched off to the battlefield!"

A handful of people with conviction actually left Guangxi Province and made their way toward the fighting.

As the weeks passed, a chaotic whirlwind of rumors flooded the province.

There was one going around that the rebels had already been completely crushed. Another that the war was deadlocked and the casualties were piling up on both sides. And then a fresh round of leaflets and wall posters claiming that the imperial army was losing ground and getting pushed back.

Anyone with half a brain cell immediately discarded the first rumor as nonsense.

"If the war is over, shouldn't the imperial troops be back right now? But not one of them has come back. How in the hell does that look like a victory?"

As the war dragged on, even those who'd kept their heads down and their mouths shut started to believe what was written on the leaflets and actually do something about it.

And this grassroots uprising wasn't just restricted to Guangxi. 

People who were sick to death of being treated like garbage and furious citizens pushed to the brink by the Han Dynasty started packing their bags and marched toward the warzone.

***

Meanwhile, back in the warzone.

The scattered skirmishes that had been spreading wide across southeastern Shaanxi saw a slight shift in momentum.

The hundred thousand civilians conscripted by the Central Military Command and the new recruits who had come to join the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult flooded both camps with activities.

Thanks to them, a brief lull settled over the fighting.

Because both factions had just received reinforcements that vastly outnumbered their surviving veterans, the commanders on both sides had no choice but to pull their lines back and properly organize their bloated new ranks.

The same lull had come to Sichuan as well, though for somewhat different reasons.

Thanks to the stellar performance of Dokgo Ryong and the nomad cavalry, the allied forces in Sichuan had succeeded in executing Eunuch Cha who had been operating like a detached special force.

However, the overall direction of the war was not flowing very favorably for them. Instead of crumbling or retreating, the Southern Military Command simply splintered their force into smaller brigades of ten thousand men and dragged the Sichuan division into a localized guerrilla warfare just like in Shaanxi.

Even with the combined number of the Gansu Army led by Yang Gwang, the Taoists of the Qingcheng Sect, and the Divine Cult’s elites led by Baek Un-hak, the Demonic Cult Allied Forces were still outnumbered two-to-one by the Southern Military Command. Trying to plug the holes against a numerically superior enemy attacking from all sides was a nightmare in itself.

It was only thanks to Dokgo Ryong’s stellar performance that the frontline in Sichuan hadn’t collapsed yet.

Just as the Sichuan front was about to be overwhelmed, the recruits from Xinjiang finally finished basic training and marched into Sichuan, giving the suffocating commanders some much-needed breathing room. The fresh blood allowed them to stubbornly hold the line for weeks, desperately shielding the local civilians from massacres orchestrated by the Imperial Family.

As thousands more freshly trained recruits from different provinces flooded into Sichuan, the Southern Military Command realized the tides had turned and immediately pulled all their forces back to southern Sichuan.

"Are we seriously going to let those bastards walk away?! We need to run those bastards down right now and sever their heads from their necks!!"

Of course, Dokgo Ryong was throwing a tantrum when he realized he couldn’t just run rampant and slaughter the enemies.

Thankfully, the combined effort of Cheongmok, Yang Gwang, and Baek Un-hak had managed to hold the reckless old fool from causing a disaster.

"Stop this instant, Right Guardian!"

"Our soldiers are in no condition to fight right now!!"

"We need to take this opportunity to get the men back on their feet!"

Of all of them, the one who looked most pained by this was Baek Un-hak, who'd never gotten along with Dokgo Ryong to begin with.

‘Haah. Every time that senile bastard opens his mouth, I want to shove a lit Wooden Boxed Thunder Bomb right down his throat. What on earth possessed the Cult Master to give the Right Guardian position to this madman?’

If Dokgo Ryong hadn't been the Right Guardian, Baek Un-hak wouldn't have bothered with courtesy at all. He'd have just cursed the old man out to his face.

Meanwhile, the object of Baek Un-hak's silent resentment, Wi Jin-hak, was attending a meeting near Shangnan in Shaanxi Province.

Taking advantage of the sudden ceasefire, the Divine Cult had summoned all their top masters and field commanders from their scattered units to discuss the matter of organizing their new recruits.

By pure coincidence of timing, Jong-ri Chu could attend the meeting as well.

"Chief Strategist Zhuge, how are the supply arrangements coming along?"

Compared to the frantic days when the Divine Monk was hunting them, Wi Jin-hak's voice was remarkably calm and composed as he asked the question.

"Since the autumn harvest has only recently concluded, our provisions should be stable for the foreseeable future. The Southern Military Command running around and burning down farms in Sichuan definitely caused a minor setback, but the crop yields we received from Hanzhong were massive. And thanks to the Deputy Master of the Missionary Hall, the surplus grain we purchased from the north and the Muslim territories has left our storehouses completely filled."

After covering the grain situation, Zhuge Mun moved on to military supplies.

"Between the equipment we've captured in battle and the propaganda campaign we've set up in the rear, our military supplies should hold up without any major issues for the time being."

That was precisely what had made it possible to train over a hundred thousand new recruits and send them off to the front.

Once the civilians have produced sufficient propaganda materials and the campaign has spread across the Central Plains and become self-sustaining, the civilians in the rear are reassigned to different tasks. Some were put to work repairing battle-damaged equipment while others were tasked with mass-producing basic battlefield necessities like bandages, uniforms, and arrows.

When Wi Jin-hak had heard everything Zhuge Mun had to say, he turned to look at Il-mok.

"This too is the Left Guardian's achievement. You stayed behind in Gansu and prepared all of this in advance. Well done."

Il-mok had flawlessly delivered on that promise before finally marching to the frontlines himself.

Hearing Wi Jin-hak's praise, Il-mok shook his head and bowed. "None of this would have been possible if you hadn't held the line and conquered Shaanxi entirely on your own while I was securing the rear, Cult Leader."

The back-and-forth between Wi Jin-hak and Il-mok softened the atmosphere in the meeting room quite a bit.

Right then, Jong-ri Chu carefully raised a hand.

"Speak, Deputy Master of the Missionary Hall."

Wi Jin-hak addressed him by his official title instead of calling him Sixth Brother, and Jong-ri Chu opened his mouth. "Actually, there are a few problems I need to raise regarding the supply lines."

The slight warmth in the room dropped back to cold, and Wi Jin-hak asked with a grave expression, "What kind of problems?"

"Rumors about the war raging in the Central Plains have recently begun circulating through the territory of the Muslims as well. Those crafty merchants are using it as leverage to jack up their prices of two, somtimes three times over, while simultaneously trying to purchase the goods we sell for less than half their original price."

"The greedy sons of bitches!"

Sparks flashed in Wi Jin-hak's eyes.

Jong-ri Chu glanced at him cautiously and added more.

"But that's actually the minor problem. Lately, they've completely cut off the sale of anything that could possibly be classified as military materiel, and they've started aggressively hoarding their own silver. And they are doing this... because they are preparing for a war of their own."

"A war?"

Wi Jin-hak's voice carried a wave of heavy Qi as he turned back to Jong-ri Chu.

"Those treacherous rats! They're massing an army to stab us in the back while we're distracted!"

"N-No, that is not it, Cult Leader! A massive rebellion broke out in the western half of the Muslims’ territories, and it's rapidly escalating into a full-scale civil war. The eastern merchants we trade with are hoarding weapons and silver in case the rebellion spills over into their borders."

"I see..."

Everyone in the room wore complicated expressions.

They'd originally had no interest in the Western Regions whatsoever, but because it was directly tied to their supply lines, they had gradually become aware of its existence. 

A massive war was brewing in the neighboring continent that was easily rivaling the Central Plains in size.

If that massive war were to spill over to the Central Plains…

Thoughts like that flitted through their minds.

Then Zhuge Mun broke the silence.

"It seems our trade routes with the Muslim merchants are effectively dead for the foreseeable future. That is the only thing we need to care about right now. We haven't even managed to topple the Han Dynasty; worrying about a hypothetical foreign invasion is a complete and utter waste of time."

Realizing he was entirely right, Wi Jin-hak firmly nodded his head.

"The Chief Strategist is right."

After steering the atmosphere back on track, Zhuge Mun turned his head once more and looked at Jong-ri Chu.

"Is what you wanted to raise limited to the Muslims situation, Deputy Master?"

Unfortunately, Jong-ri Chu shook his head. "There's one more piece of unsettling news, though it's unconfirmed as of right now."

"Unsettling news?"

"This one came from the northern steppes. Not the steppe regions that have already submitted to our Divine Cult, but the steppes to the northeast. There is a tribe that has unified that entire region called the Merkit. Ah, all of you present here might know them better by their Central Plains name, the Mierqi tribe. The news reported that the Mierqi tribe has started to send their warriors down to the northern border.”

At that, Il-mok furrowed his brow.

‘The Merkits? Why does that name sound so familiar?'

He was trying to place that nagging sense of deja vu when Hwangbo Ak spoke up in annoyance. "Do we really need to concern ourselves with the movements of some northern nomads?"

It was Zhuge Mun who answered him.

"That heavily depends on the circumstances. When you consider the customs and temperament of nomadic peoples, this is a fairly critical matter."

With that opening, Zhuge Mun slowly turned to look at the faces around him and calmly continued his explanation.

"The northern steppes are an unforgiving land. Because of that, the nomads periodically relocated their tribe in the hope of searching for pastures to feed their horses and sheep. The real issue with their lifestyle is when winter comes. The freezing winters of the north are more vicious than those we have here. Faced with starvation, they are more than willing to raid neighboring tribes to take what they need. And at the same time, since their warriors will inevitably lose their lives during those battles, they can also reduce the number of mouths they have to feed, making it what one might call killing two birds with one stone."

It was an incredibly clinical explanation that bordered on sociopathic.

"Nomads are the kind of people who rot and die if they stop raiding. The problem comes when they've had such a long run of successful raids that the tribe has grown to an absurd size. They can't very well raid themselves, so once a tribe grows past a certain point, they've always come looking south that is the Central Plains. It's been that way since ancient times."

He tapped his fan against the map as he spoke.                     

"If autumn is the season of harvest for us in the Central Plains... then for the northern nomads, their season of harvest is winter."

The harvest season had just ended, which meant winter was just around the corner.

"And the fact that the nomads aren't fighting amongst themselves but are instead scouting southward, that's as good as saying they've already built something that goes beyond a tribe and is closer to a kingdom."

As he listened to Zhuge Mun's explanation, Il-mok finally remembered where he'd heard the name Merkit before.