"It's bad."

With the power of the Heart of Terra and observing the movement in the distance, Ian's soul returns to his physical body.

With a solemn expression, he said to his companions in the conference hall, "I see that the distant void has become pitch black, although it is not the pitch darkness I predicted, but it is not far off."

"It's the black of resentment—the area has been completely consumed by resentment."

Speaking of this, Ian let out a deep breath, "Flying Flame Land has used demonic technology!"

At this time, more than a week had passed since the attack on Xiahui City.

This week, Xia Huiling's city hall team has been working overtime from top to bottom, and it has been completely overwhelmed.

Although there were no casualties from the fall of the airship, the economic damage was real - the material cost of the shelter tower was also money, not to mention the damage caused by the Aldbert overclocking, which was difficult to recycle, and all had to be rebuilt from scratch.

Moreover, some of the passengers who died in the fall of the airship were also partners of Xia Hui Ling.

Although it is said that most of the passengers in that airship are not very good at dealing with Xia Hui Ling, after all, people who are late to the sky boat for such a big thing as the Kui Ji Ceremony of the Spiritual Holy Land are not allies no matter how they think about it, and they are not even as good as those who do not come, at least the other party has no connection with Xia Hui Ling.

But even if it's just a partner who looks like a god, it's a partner.

For example, Viscount Riemore, Ian can know with his toes that he who has cut off the other party's financial route is simply the other party's mother-killing enemy, but no matter how much Viscount Lymore wants to knock Ian to the ground, at least he is still supplying raw materials well, and he doesn't dare to steal women and play tricks.

And on that empty ship, there were three imperial nobles of the same level as Viscount Limore, and there were many other minor nobles and ordinary merchants, and some of their final destinations might not be Xiahui Territory but Harrison Port, so they were confused and explained here.

By the way, leave Ian with a mess.

Now, the Rimore family is frantically asking Ian about the details, all the past contracts are nullified, and they even say that they will sue Ian in the Imperial Court to expose the vicious true face of Ian's beautiful skin.

"You just go and sue, no matter how much you sue Viscount Limore, you won't be able to come back! He has turned into a lump of ashes in the Xia Hui Territory, and has become the agricultural fertilizer of our territory!"

Even a good-tempered person like Ian was angry when he encountered a mentally handicapped aristocratic family that was messing around, and he directly threatened: "You'd better not give me to Nanling, when you get to Nanling, I won't make you all into fertilizer!"

At that time, no one in the entire conference hall dared to speak, and everyone watched from their noses and noses, not daring to anger the fairy lord who had turned the conference room into a freezer at minus 50 degrees.

- But to be honest, this temper is really quite goblin.

This time the crisis is not just the annulment of contracts.

The Demon Legion of the Flying Flame Land has cut off the transportation arteries of the Southwest Province, and there is a big problem with the exchange of materials.

"Boss, the Imperial Noble Hall has just sent a message, and they said that we don't have to worry about the threat of those families! They also said that at present, our Earls of Silver Peak should play the example of the imperial nobles, quickly rectify the chaos in Nanling, and prepare to prevent the surprise attack of the Flying Flame Land."

At this moment, Qingchao reported a good news, and Ian, who drank a big sip of Coke to deflat, sighed: "Even if they know who the victims are, if they really dare to let those fools sue me, I will fly to the Western Province today to kill all those mentally handicapped people and blame them on the Flying Flame Land."

After thinking for a while, Ian waved his hand and said, "Tell them that there is something big in the Void Realm over there, and the crisis is at least a natural disaster, and I can get the army of the Flying Flame Land to raid the South Ridge and the demons of the Void Realm, but I may not be able to deal with that thing."

"Yes, Boss!" Qingchao happily agreed, and then he cautiously asked, "We really can't handle it?"

"I can't say. At the very least, it will come at a big price." Ian Dao, he pondered for a moment, recalled the process on the way to the Star Extinguishing Dao, and said slowly, "At the very least, after this demon army is completely formed in the future, it will be at the fifth energy level

If you don't make a move, you can easily destroy a small country."

- I was almost blown up, isn't that easy to destroy a small country?

Nodding slightly, the Prophet said solemnly, "Even if I can deal with it, it shouldn't be up to me. Are all the people of the empire dead? The main battlefield is not in our South Ridge."

"Scott, go see if Adalbert is awake, wake up and let him go to the Shroud and wait, I'll check on him."

At this moment, thinking of countermeasures, Ian began to assign tasks: "If you don't wake up, go and prepare the refugee camp - although there are many casualties in the attack on the Nanling Territories this time, the cold-blooded point is not a bad thing for us, there will be many refugees coming to join us in the future, prepare the camp first, prepare food and medicine."

"Beware of infiltration, there must be a Flameland spy inside."

"Yes, sir." Scott responded crisply, and Ian continued to explain to Qingchao: "You protect those seedlings in the training camp, they are all meditation cultivators, and they don't have combat effectiveness yet, if we die one, we will have one less team core in the future, so you can strictly guard and protect them."

"But you also have to be prepared for a mission, there are a lot of people who need your sword."

"Okay, Boss!"

Qingchao did not hesitate, as the most popular among students and an instructor with no shelves, Qingchao has always been very popular in the training camp, and he is considered a big brother, and Ian is not afraid of any mistakes from him, because Qingchao's son immigrated from the Whale Song Cliff some time ago, he has good qualifications, and he was selected into the training camp and is a member of the second phase.

"Roland, the snow dome continues to start, I will hand over all the iron construction team to you, twenty-four hours without stopping, we must build a sustainable core as soon as possible, the war is now, and the holy land is the future."

"Old Farr, you're reaching the limit of your life."

Ian looked at the other side of the conference room, and he said solemnly, "You have been in charge of writing your thoughts in the laboratory recently, and there are no examples of artificial soul holders in our territory after the natural life of the person who died, and you, as a cadre of the territory, must be mentally aware - death is not retirement, understand?"

Although the words were not human at all, both Roland and Old Farr laughed, and they stood up and saluted Ian, "Promise to complete the task, my lord!"

Finally, Ian turned his head to look at Theo, who looked expectant.

True Dragon's face, "What about me, what about me?" Ian thought for a moment, "You...... Go and accompany your mother and Miss Birch, frost matchmakers. Mentor Frozen Fish has gone to the South China Sea to help carry the elves, and you are ready to receive them."

"Okay Ian!"

It was forced, but the task was important, so Sheoye happily left.

After taking care of everything in his territory, Ian sat in his seat with a frown, looking at the various reports in his hand.

Compared with today's environment, the group of small and medium-sized nobles from all over the country who died on the airboat, and the damaged shelter tower of the Xia Hui Collar are not a crisis at all.

Although the groundbreaking ceremony did not end perfectly, all the forces had witnessed the Cult of Spiritual Beings mastering the technology of artificial psionics, and the envoys of all parties stationed in the Spiritual Sect had also witnessed the fall of the airship and the defensive power of the Great Array of Radiant City's protection from a high place.

Dozens of floors of high-rise buildings have not been destroyed by the enemy without becoming a target, and this alone is enough to make the Chongling Building a monument - as long as it still exists for a day, the people of Xiahui City will not lose confidence.

Not to mention that Adalbert turned into a giant of light later, and even swiped a wave of points on the territory, even on the day of the attack, Ian was asked by a group of people, "What kind of technology is that?" "How much money can I pay to cooperate?" This kind of problem.

In terms of impression alone, if it weren't for the current war between the Empire and the Flamelands, Ian's wave of propaganda would at least attract the cooperation of four or five forces and several waves of investment.

Although other forces don't have a better defensive formation than the Shelter Circle, for example, within the Empire, isn't there a small shield generator modeled after the Imperial Capital? At the very least, Ian knew that the latest generation of armor was basically equipped with a small shield generator, which had no drawbacks other than high energy consumption.

Even so, there is never too much technical reserve for this kind of thing.

"The real problem is that the Western Frontier is 'dismembered.'"

Looking at the map projected by the Heart of Terra, Ian frowned, smearing large scarlets in the area between the Westside and the Southridge.

Under the scorched earth tactics of the Flying Flame Lands, the iron walls of the Western Fortress were bypassed by the Flying Flame Lands from the Shroud of the Grand Duke of Thorin - on the other side of the mountains, even the Shroud had a barrier, but the rebellion of the Grand Duke of Thorin caused this barrier to be breached.

With their elusive mobility, the Legion of Bad Demons destroys all supply routes of the fort group and slaughters all villages and cities along the way.

Because the demon legion does not need supplies, does not need to obtain information alive, and has no morality, it can easily carry out this kind of negative wall clearing.

And the Demon Legion can even create a lot of resentment with such actions, impregnate the Void, and even secretly create some kind of "big thing...... If there is no accident, it is at least a fourth-level monster.

In just one week, the Demon Legion had destroyed all the living forces in the western realm that had not retreated to the big cities for defense, and all the towns around the official roads had become no man's land, except for those villages located in the forests and mountains.

The death toll is probably more than one million.

This is the real war.

Now, the Demon Legion soldiers are heading directly at the Golden Plains, and their target doesn't need to think about it, it must be Nanling, and it can even be more certain, it is the "Silver Peak Leader".

And, that's not the end.

The Demon Legion is one of the two major bloodlines of the Flying Flame Land, the "Nemathas Bloodline" technology.

And the Abasarom bloodline is the bloodline that really confronts the Westfrontier Legion.

By the time Nemathas invaded the western hinterland of the empire, the kings of Abasalom had already sent their royal legions and were engaged in a fierce war of attrition against the western fortresses. They spared no cost, no loss of life and ammunition.

Their purpose is to deplete the supplies of the Western Legion as quickly as possible when the Western Fortress Group is not supplied, and then swallow and annihilate all the capable and living forces in the western part of the empire.

"Marquis of Barton, where are our hole cards?"

While Ian signed several documents, he asked Terraheart's to help him connect with the Marquis of Batun's communication, "Don't tell us that we need to use the power of this shabby rural place of Southridge to stop the demons, is there any power I don't know about the Nineteenth Legion and the South Sea Fleet?"

"No, no. The Nineteenth Army and the South China Sea Fleet have a total of ten squads of armored warbands, and there are a total of forty-one armor teams in reserve, which can't hold the Golden Plains."

The Marquis of Batun has also been busy lately - but he doesn't need to coordinate the mountain people's forces to increase their armaments, and Ian is also busy coordinating the war production with various forces. That's why he transferred power to Ian, who had foreseen the end of the Flamelands' all-out raid, so he gave the stall to Ian.

"That's enough."

Ian estimated that forty armors are already considered a large army for Nanling, and no matter how many pilots there are, the productivity of the empire is actually far greater than the ability of drivers to cultivate, which is why there was artificial intelligence-assisted armor in the emperor in the first place.

And now, Ian can completely transform these forty armors to connect Terraheart for accurate and high-precision combat, and can also collect armor combat data to accelerate Terraheart's automated armored driving technology as soon as possible.

When that time comes, he will forcibly take over the military factory near Nauman City, and when the time comes, he will let Terra's Heart drive one, what kind of driver, I will use artificial intelligence to top, and if Flying Flame has the ability, I will exchange one with him, and four for one is a loss of Flying Flame!

Of course, the idea is good, Ian can't think of a way to forcibly take over the military factory except for killing people for a while, those are all military nobles of the Nineteenth Legion, and the Marquis of Batun is only the biggest manager in it, even if it is really a word, it is impossible to let that group of people give up the land in their hands, even if it is just "borrowing".

"Because they are afraid, they will not pay it back."

Ian really won't pay it back.

And he was really thinking about how to kill all the people in the way of the empire so that he could take power alone.

"There's no need to kill."

But the Marquis of Barton seemed to see what Ian's silence meant, and although he couldn't guess that Ian's purpose was the factories and alchemy workshops in Nauman City, he could completely guess that the young earl wanted to clench the five fingers of Southridge and clench them into fists to deal with the approaching Flying Flame Land.

And if you want to clench your fist, you must crush something.

He smiled and said, "It is obviously the duty of Wei Cheng's 19th Army Corps to encounter such a serious raid on Nanling, and several leading officers of the Legion, including my son, will be interrogated by military tribunals in the next two months."

"Although there will be no problem with the final result, after all, it does have nothing to do with them, but in the past two months, we, or rather, you have the final say."

"Okay."

Satisfied, Ian replied briefly, "That's a lot less nonsense." But he still frowned and asked, "It's just, Lord Marquis, I mean, 'Imperial Capital, is it really sitting back and watching over there?'

"Since the Flying Flame Land has infiltrated us like this, and the supply routes of both the South Ridge and the Western Realm have been caught, then we must have infiltrated them almost as well."

"The Demon Legion is not a new thing to me, and I dare say that the Gnostic Academy has definitely mastered similar techniques, at most because the research direction is different and the progress is different - is there really no prevention on the Empire's side?"

"Didn't you prophesy?" The Marquis of Batun sighed, "Then you know that the Imperial Capital needs this kind of 'crisis, situation.'"

"So, what about the means to boost people after the crisis?" Ian said, "It's like the Flying Flame Bombing my main city with an airboat, only to be taken by me with the Circle of Shelter - what I say now, what I want to do, it's like a god."

"The Imperial Capital must have a similar idea, so what about their 'Shelter Circle'?"

「…… The capital of learning."

After a pause, the Marquis of Barton seemed to be thinking about whether he could tell Ian the news, but finally said clearly, "The Empire and the Capital of Learning launched a deep technical cooperation twenty-five years ago, and the level of secrecy is second only to the process of forming an alliance with the South Moore Preservation Party."

"What cooperation?"

Finally squeezed some news out of the old fox's mouth, and Ian's eyes lit up: "Let me think about it, the research advantages of the City of Knowledge are the mechanical technology of the Limbo and the pre-era civilization, as well as the cutting-edge alchemy, the Aether Heart...... Could it be that it is the Imaginary Mekhan? Or ......?"

"We each paid a huge price, and we both got a satisfactory result......

Marquis Batun didn't respond to Ian's question, he just said slowly: "As for the specific content, Ian, you can't know for the time being, we know that you won't leak it, but I'm ...... There is a problem. I can't say it."

- Soul Seal? Or is it the Oath Circle?

Ian was confident that the Marquis of Barton would not be hanging his appetite here, and he must not be able to tell.

As for such a high level of secrecy......

"Beast of a Thousand Stars?"

Ian lowered his voice, "Is it a study of the Thousand Stars Beast?"

"You?!"

Marquis Batun was really stunned this time, even though he was through the communication circle, he could still feel his shock: "How do you know? Could it be that you are in Canaan Moore from the side of the Lord of the Clear Moon Tower...... Hmm, wait."

Thinking of Ian's identity, the Marquis of Batun said solemnly, "Could it be that we will really use it in the future? It's so bad?!"

"No, not really."

Ian knew very well that the Thousand Stars Beast's 'Dark Key' was probably some kind of last resort similar to the Death Hand system on Terra's side, and that Terra would have no meaning of existence without the existence of the Empire, and that they were really crazy enough to press this button.

So, when the Marquis of Barton doubted Ian's prophecy, when it came to the existence of the Thousand Stars Beast, he would not

Forbidden to be shocked by that kind of future - is it possible that the empire will lose like that, and drag the whole world into the water together?

This is the same as the earthlings knowing that they will really press the global nuclear button in the future, although shocked, but it feels not impossible.

Even if it was because of the four major Orthodox Sects and other forces, the Key to Darkness might not be able to destroy Terra, but it would definitely be no problem to drag the hostile forces of the Flying Flame Land, the Heavenly King's Court, and the Junling Fortress into the water together.

"It's good if it doesn't work."

Marquis Batun also breathed a sigh of relief, Ian even knew that even the Thousand Star Beast knew that even if he still couldn't tell the secret due to his oath, his heart was much more relaxed: "Although the Flying Flame Land Demon Legion has advanced more than we imagined, so that we have not evacuated those armed civilians, we do have countermeasures."

"I don't know why, the artificial demons of the Flame Lands can circumvent the Shretched Mekkai's automatic clearing system, but our research into the Shroud is enough to manipulate the Mekkai and hold on to a few key fortresses to suppress them—as for how to turn defeat into victory in the midst of disadvantage...... The answer is in the sky."

"Sky ......" Ian looked up thoughtfully, looking at the sky above Glowing City.

Although it was daytime, with the blessing of the foresight and the gift of the stars, Ian could faintly see the shadows above the sky.

Dragon Island, which rotates in the Earth's equatorial orbit, always passes through the South Ridge.

"I guess I understand." He said, "No matter what kind of heaven it is, I can roughly understand it...... So how long do you need to hold on?"

"Two months."

The Marquis of Batun said solemnly, "Two months, Ian."

"The empire has been winning for too long, and there is no sense of crisis anymore."

"It's like the people in your city who are no longer scared when they are attacked by something like a falling airship...... The empire has overcome so many crises and powerful enemies that the people have forgotten the taste of defeat."

"Even after the death of the first Emperor Inaga II in the Dark Moon Turmoil, the empire still stands, and our Majesty even holds all the territory, and no enemy dares to attack."

"People are used to winning, so victory is meaningless."

Speaking of this, the Marquis of Batun sighed, "Your Majesty...... Your Majesty, Axel, I have always regretted it."

"When he talks to me in private, he is occasionally as vulnerable as he was decades ago...... He muttered to himself that he had always regretted that he had managed to hold on to all the territory."

"He should lose a little bit, it doesn't matter if he has more, as long as the core area is intact, those small places with leftovers should be occupied by other forces."

"In that case, although his own prestige will be reduced a little, people will hold their breath, and they will all hate the enemies who have given them shame and defeat, and they will become the same as ***."

"These two months are a necessary humiliation. Not humiliated, not to wake up the sleeping Imperials."

Is that actually the case...... Because you won too much, you don't have a sense of crisis? But those who died...... At the end of the day, it's arrogance.

Ian pondered Marquis Baton's words, he felt that the other party was exaggerating, and the empire definitely had deeper considerations.

However, two months was enough time for him to roughly straighten out the management structure of Nanling and forcibly spread the terminal and the heart of Terra to other noble realms.

At that time, after two months, no matter whether the empire succeeds in counterattacking or not, at least the Flying Flame Land will no longer be able to infiltrate Nanling as before.

Well, from this point of view, the Empire's theory is correct, if this group of stupid Nanling little nobles didn't die and didn't suffer heavy losses in the previous attacks, a capable person like Ian would not be able to grasp the power that they held in the palm of their hands.

"What else do you need, Ian?"

The Marquis of Batun said, "The Empire can give you all the support except for the physical help."

"That's enough."

Although "all support other than substantial help" sounds funny, what Ian needs is not a resource in the first place, but a "name": "Lord Marquis, I need you to announce in the name of the Governor of Southridge, Nan."

Ling has completely switched to wartime military management."

"And, with the slogan of 'preventing infiltration', it was announced that Nanling must be networked - the [Nanling Provincial Mutual Aid Network] developed by Yinfeng Ling."

"That's all I need."