Chapter 6996 Onlookers

Chapter 6996 Onlookers
With a single strike, the spiral force field was pierced, and the originally fragmented light quickly connected into a line, directly shattering the spear of heaven and earth essence that Zhang Yong had thrown out.

Then a terrifying impact erupted about twenty meters away from Ananda. Ananda, who was prepared, had already retreated before the thing exploded. The illusory light sword that stretched like water had formed a thin film in front of Ananda during its retraction.

The shockwave rippled back, and Zena used the impact to flip and retreat, while Andana successfully avoided the impact under the protection of that seemingly fragile illusory light.

As for Zhang Yong, this man who was already invincible in the small world, he naturally had no intention of dodging at all. He directly activated Slavnis to use Incinerate to annihilate and use Sacrifice to absorb the aftershocks.

As the dust settled, the three stood in opposite directions, leaving behind a large crater that still emitted some heat. Ananda and Zena both looked at Zhang Yong indifferently.

“He’s gotten much stronger.” Zena stood in the northwest and looked at Zhang Yong, speaking with a hint of caution. After all, he was a member of the Kushan elite who had actually clashed with Zhang Yong. Although they had only briefly clashed in East Africa last time, he knew Zhang Yong’s strength, and this time he was clearly much stronger.

“It’s not just his power, there must also be external forces, that spiral force field, which can even penetrate my defensive sword light, trying to disrupt me from a distance.” Ananda made a more astute judgment.

"They've probably captured a useful demon god." Zena drew his demon god weapon. Although he didn't want to fight Zhang Yong, the other party was so persistent that he had no choice but to send Zhang Yong away. Surely the two of them couldn't kill Zhang Yong?

"Probably." Ananda then removed the weapon Liu Tong had given her and glanced at Zena. Zena took a deep breath. "Damn it, are you out of your mind?!"

"Strange, why are the Han veterans suddenly attacking Zena and Anada?" Vasudeva I returned from a meal to find his television screen showing Zena and Anada fighting against the Han veterans. "Weren't they fighting the Xiongnu just a moment ago? What happened?"

"The third phase is over. Our Kushan veterans who participated in the competition, including those captured alive and those killed, have eliminated a total of eleven Xiongnu." Oswin explained simply, "Just now, the Han court announced the end of the third phase, the Xiongnu have been dealt with, and then the grand military exercise will continue."

"I think Anada and Zena seem quite wary of this guy?" Vasudeva I said to Zhang Yong with some curiosity after taking his seat. He had already seen Zena's performance on the screen this time, and Anada was indeed worthy of being Oswin's personal guard.

As for Oswin's personal guards participating in the grand military exercises held by the Han Dynasty and becoming captains of the Han princess's subordinate teams, Vasudeva I did not find it strange at all.

“He’s probably the strongest veteran of the Han Dynasty,” Oswin said after thinking for a moment. “But it’s two against one now, so it’s not a big problem. It’s just that Zena is also carrying four Xiongnu people, which will affect his performance a little, but it shouldn’t be a big problem.”

The captured Xiongnu people could have been handed over earlier, but Zena thought about it and decided to hand them over to the princess later, so that the princess could praise them. So he kept them.

Then Vasudeva I and the others saw Zhang Yong casually throw a spear with the destructive power of internal energy leaving the body, and their whole bodies went numb. This was completely different from what they knew before!

"Isn't this destructive power a bit excessive?" Urdu asked in a low voice. This was about the same level he was at. Even if he could be stronger in non-cloudy conditions, he was still no match for Zhang Yong's performance. For the Han Dynasty's top veteran to have this level of performance at the Qi Refining stage was too much!

"It's probably because of the more and better quality demon weapons," Helira said with a hint of speculation. "After all, a large part of the strength of Zena and Anda now comes from the special weapons dropped by the demons they killed before."

"Do you think this operation of killing demons and dropping special weapons is just a spur-of-the-moment thing done by the Han Dynasty, or does such a demon actually exist in reality?" Zhu Helai, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up. He had actually been paying attention to this thing for a while, but he just hadn't found a point of entry.

Oswin glanced at Zhu Helai, then said nothing. Although the appearance of the Binzi Demon God during the Norse War, Huangfu Song, for the sake of human civilization, released relevant information to Oswin, and Oswin erased this memory after humanity joined forces to solve Odin's Tomb.

The blank spaces in his memory made Oswin feel somewhat uneasy, so he devised a secret memory restoration technique and remembered the Binzi Demon God. After that, Oswin erased that memory again. Some time ago, while recalling his memories, he noticed the blank spaces again and felt something was strange, so he tried to restore his memories once more...

In short, these past few days Oswin has been at the point where he knows about the Bing Corpse Demon God. Well, if it weren't for watching the Grand Martial Arts Tournament, Oswin would have already erased his related memories.

Therefore, as soon as the demon god appeared, Oswin knew what it was. It was undoubtedly the Binshi Demon God, and a very powerful one at that. The subsequent actions of the Han Dynasty further proved the corrupting influence of the Binshi Demon God.

The fact that Ananda couldn't use the complete Demon God Weapon is enough to show how troublesome this thing is.

"How could a demon god that can turn into a weapon possibly exist in reality?" Before Prince Qi could speak, Tadata voiced his thoughts.

“I don’t think so. If such a thing really doesn’t exist, why would there be a prerequisite of breaking through the limits of normal will to use it? Moreover, Zena’s performance also shows that this thing actually has some kind of characteristic.” Dilip said with half-closed eyes, “The Han Dynasty would not pursue so-called details in such meaningless things, so I estimate that the so-called demon god probably really exists.”

“Maybe they’re like the minotaurs we created from the inner world,” Hrithrach added. “Just because something doesn’t exist on Earth doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist in the inner world. Although there are many problems there, it still has quite unique value!”

“What I mean is that this kind of thing is worth developing.” Zhu Helai felt the gazes of others on him and spoke his mind. “After solving the problem of food and logistics, the biggest gap between us and the Han Dynasty is actually in equipment.”

"Equipment is only one aspect; the biggest gap lies in the army commanders." Oswin interrupted Zhu Helai's statement. After a trip to Northern Europe and witnessing firsthand the first and second-best large-scale army commanders among the living, Oswin clearly recognized his own shortcomings. Furthermore, he realized that the biggest difference between the Kushan Empire and the Han Dynasty was undoubtedly him, Oswin!
Zhu Helai was stunned for a moment, glanced at Oswin, and didn't know what to say. "None of us dare to shift the blame for you. Don't you know your status?"

To put it bluntly, even someone as capable as Zhu Helai, with his intelligence, status, and background, couldn't solve the army's food and logistics problems!
Southern Nobleland has no shortage of food, with three harvests a year. Even if things are handled haphazardly, it should be no problem to provide food and supplies for the army. However, in reality, before Oswin came to power, the Royal Guard of Northern Nobleland was so badly treated that they looked pale and sickly!
This is normal, though. Even in the 21st century, let alone the 2nd and 3rd centuries, the ruling Brahmins and Kshatriyas still could not guarantee the army's food and logistics.

This isn't a problem of food shortages or logistical deficiencies; it's a problem of neglect!
You lowly soldier, what are you doing eating rice? Go eat grass!
That's roughly the idea, which is why Nan Gui's food and logistics supply always had problems.

This is also why the Northern Nobles, who originated from the Yuezhi, thought the Southern Nobles were crazy, but couldn't say anything. In the past, the Northern Nobles' soldiers looked malnourished, but at least they always had something to eat, or at worst, they didn't eat well. When the Yuezhi high command went to negotiate with the Southern Nobles' high command about this matter, they would find that the Southern Nobles' soldiers were in a worse state. In fact, the Southern Nobles' high command had really tried their best, but it was just that under the command of each level, it had always been like this.

They were even able to provide the Northern Nobles with enough food to eat every day, which was already at the level of the Southern Nobles in the mid-to-late 20th and 21st centuries. As for doing better, the Southern Nobles themselves really couldn't do it.

Therefore, even with Zhu Helai's successive reforms, he was unable to solve the problem of logistical food supply, but Oswin solved this problem.

Oswin simply set up dedicated granaries. Since there was grain, and it was confirmed that the grain was in that granary, there was no need to say anything else. He sent people to the granary to confirm the grain, and then the corresponding army took it directly, without allowing any other parties to interfere. Anyone who interfered would have their hand chopped off.

Then the food and supplies were indeed supplied. To be honest, this operation was incredible. Theoretically speaking, Oswin should have committed suicide after being shot by more than a dozen arrows. But the city of Kannau fell, most of the Brahmins collapsed, and a million Yuezhi people migrated to Nangui, forcibly filling a class and maintaining military strength amidst the turmoil.

As a result, although Oswin suffered several assassination attempts, nothing serious happened. In addition, the Kushan soldiers had been fighting for many years and had a considerable number of veterans. After the first replenishment of food and supplies, their morale was quite good. Moreover, with sufficient supplies, the southern Kushan soldiers were able to conduct regular organizational training.

After all, the Indus-Ganges region, a fertile land that has been developed since the Mauryan dynasty and yields three harvests a year, is not lacking in food; what it lacks is a way to distribute it.

In fact, the situation in Rome was similar. Although the locust plague caused significant damage, Rome's food shortage was only about 10%. However, considering that the Roman Empire was still suppressing unrest, it's clear just how disastrous the distribution of resources could be.

At the very least, the Kushans were able to stay peacefully in the temporary palace of Mathura and watch the grand military exercise of the three great empires. This shows that, in terms of the chaos of war, the two warring empires were much more stable internally than Rome, which was just watching for fun.

After all, the two warring parties were not short of food, while Rome, who were just watching the spectacle, was indeed short of food, and because of their reckless actions, the shortage was getting bigger and bigger.

However, the biggest problem within the Kushan Empire right now is that Moncomb has pinned the blame on Zhuhelai. Even if Zhuhelai has evidence to prove his identity, he can't defend himself clearly. The current precarious stability is only the result of Oswin and Vasudeva I's joint suppression. Once Moncomb gathers all the evidence, the Kushan court is likely to explode.

Oswin had a vague feeling about this, but he had too many things to do, and he also had an extremely important task at hand, which was to improve his military command ability. Oswin now possessed all the qualities of a large-scale army commander except for command, and even far exceeded them. Once he could break through the limits and become a large-scale army commander, Oswin's abilities would experience an explosive growth.

So to some extent, Oswin was right when he said that the biggest weakness of the Kushan Empire was itself. Given the current conditions, if Oswin could become a commander of a large army, then the Kushan Empire, if not a comeback, could at least maintain a stalemate for quite some time.

Considering that the battle ahead is what the Kushans consider their final battle, if Oswin becomes the commander of the Grand Army, the Kushans might be able to sign the treaty of defeat with dignity, and might even be able to reclaim Prayaga, the true southern border city of the Kushans.

Of course, these were all correct judgments made by the Kushan leadership based on countless historical and human experiences.

Incidentally, it was also based on this judgment that Vasudeva I perfectly accepted Oswin, a Yuezhi nobleman who held the imperial will and whom even he had concealed.

After all, if Oswin really achieved the result that the Kushans wanted, ending the war and bringing the Han Dynasty and the Kushans to the negotiating table, then there would definitely be a clause in the Han-Kushan Treaty that would require Oswin to die. And given Oswin's situation, as long as Vasudeva I stopped him from doing something foolish, the other side would definitely do it for the sake of the country and the nation.

This is also why Zhuhelai was able to keep Vasudeva I in line and continue to sit in the position of scribe. After all, Vasudeva I was a smart man, and smart people can understand things very quickly. So, apart from his initial fear, after marrying his daughter to Oswin, Vasudeva I quickly adjusted his mindset and appeared to be fully supporting his son-in-law and working together with him.

The more this was the case, the more respectful Oswin became, after all, he genuinely wanted to save the Kushan Empire. With the two of them working together, the Kushan Empire actually began to show signs of prosperity.

“We’ll talk about the Grand Legion’s command later. Our Kushan Empire still has some foundation.” Vasudeva I glanced at Seghdi’s position, then turned to the screen and said, “Oswin, you have firm beliefs and resolute will. You only lack a little talent. There’s no need to worry.”

Helilah glanced at Vasudeva I, somewhat puzzled. He had originally planned that if all else failed, he would gather enough materials, then sacrifice his own descent to earth to summon the war god Mahakala, and use special means to help Oswin first achieve the command of a large army, and then make up for the lack of foundation.

Then, a special ceremony will be held to send the war god Mahakala to heaven. This operation is very difficult, but Hrithrah estimates that if he insists on pushing it, he will most likely be able to do it.

As for the related materials and losses, the Kushan Empire can handle these things. Moreover, even if something goes wrong and the worst-case scenario occurs, they can still protect General Oswin. Therefore, Hrithalakh has already begun to secretly try and guide the process.

However, judging from Vasudeva I's words, the Kushans still have some tricks up their sleeves. Helira is somewhat curious, but now is not the time to ask; he will ask later.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Helai nodded slightly at Oswin, then sat up straight and looked at the screen. However, as he turned around, he glanced at Meng Kangbu out of the corner of his eye, and a hint of coldness appeared in his eyes. This guy, if all else fails, can be used as material!
Since the navy has been destroyed and lost its strategic significance, it is unlikely to be used to defend against the Han Dynasty in the future. Therefore, the significance of Meng Kangbu in the political landscape of Kushan is not so important. Moreover, Meng Kangbu is relentlessly pursuing Zhu Helai's weakness.

Zhu Helai knew all about the shady things he had done. Even though he thought he had cleaned up his mess perfectly, the Kushan Empire's endless secret techniques meant that Zhu Helai couldn't guarantee that his methods wouldn't be discovered. His approach had always been to reduce the possibility of others investigating, rather than to be sure that he wouldn't be exposed under repeated investigations.

In this world, no one can withstand repeated investigations. Digging deep enough, everyone has a lot of dirt on them, especially since Meng Kangbu suffered such great losses before. When the other side investigates Zhu He, they will be absolutely blatant and make no attempt to hide it.

Zhu Helai was confident he could withstand the clandestine investigation, but Meng Kangbu's methods—bringing out a team of elites from the secret arts chamber and examining the events day by day according to time and history—were a different story.

To be honest, Zhu Helai really couldn't hold on any longer, even though he was certain that he had used some methods and that the past footage the other side had detected was something he had altered.

Meng Kangbuzhen and his secret agents investigated day after day, and sooner or later they would expose some of Zhu Helai's despicable acts that deserved the extermination of his entire family. Although Meng Kangbuzhen certainly wouldn't be able to find out in the short term, just from the way the other party was putting on their act, Zhu Helai realized that things were going to get bad.

So after realizing that he might not be able to escape this calamity, Zhu Helai began to think about finding a reasonable opportunity to sacrifice Meng Kangbu, who was theoretically very important but had lost his practical significance after the navy suffered heavy losses.

Promoting Oswin to the rank of Grand Commander and using Moncomb as a case study is one way to solve the problem. Necessary sacrifices can be very persuasive to political animals at times, especially when it's not about sacrificing oneself, but about sacrificing a pawn that is quite important to oneself. This can make political animals feel a sense of honor in self-sacrifice!
You only lost your life, but I am alive and will always remember this sacrifice that pierces my heart! But for the great cause of the Kushan Empire, this necessary sacrifice was worthwhile!
Meng Kangbu looked around. Just now, he had felt a chill in his heart. He looked around but couldn't find anyone to blame. His gaze fell on Zhu Helai. Just as Zhu Helai had guessed, recently, no matter what happened or whether Zhu Helai did it or not, as long as Meng Kangbu sensed something was wrong, he would put the blame on Zhu Helai.

Frankly speaking, if we continue to let Meng Kangbu investigate this way, it will really cost Zhu Helai his life!
[That's strange. There was something off about the way Zhu Helai looked at Meng Kangbu just now.] Xun Qi was puzzled. Recently, Meng Kangbu had been able to beat Zhu Helai so fiercely and openly, and Xun Qi deserved a lot of credit for that. Although Xun Qi's main role was to fan the flames, without Xun Qi's help, it wouldn't have been easy for Meng Kangbu to get his hands on that team of elites from the secret arts guild.

"Let's continue watching the Grand Martial Arts Tournament. The Huns have left the stage, so I reckon the tournament won't be long before it ends," Vasudeva I said, watching the three fighting on the screen.

"It seems like Zena and Anada are at a disadvantage," Zasali said, frowning. He found it somewhat unbelievable. It was two against one, and both of them were elites among the seventh level. How could they be at a disadvantage against someone of the same level?

"Clang!" The moment Ananda's physical beam of light suddenly appeared and entangled Zhang Yong, she lunged forward with her sword. However, the swirling sword light extended an astonishing distance, slashing at Zhang Yong from several angles. Unexpectedly, Zhang Yong sliced ​​it in half with a single stroke, then deflected the sword light aimed at the back of his head. As for the other sword lights that still swept past, Zhang Yong didn't even glance at them; Slavnis dealt with them casually.

"Zhang Yong, is that enough? You're stronger, but it won't be easy for you to take down both of us." After Ananda's blade light was cut by Zhang Yong, Zena voluntarily released the physical beam binding Zhang Yong and spoke sincerely.

"If I don't kill you both on the spot, how will people know that I've reached the strongest level in this realm!" Zhang Yong said arrogantly.

Zena and Anada are indeed difficult to deal with. Their strength is so great that even Zhang Yong finds them challenging. However, Zhang Yong's breathing rate has not changed at all, while the other two have clearly shown signs of decline. Fighting weaklings doesn't consume much of their stamina, but fighting a tough opponent like Zhang Yong requires them to be prepared for every move, and their mental energy is definitely being depleted.

"Do you really have to do this?" Zena asked Zhang Yong.

"I've already said it, otherwise how can people understand that I've done my best?" Zhang Yong said with a sneer. "So, now it's my turn to make my move!"

“Alright.” Zena nodded silently, then released the four Hunnic will entities. Zhao Yun, who had been watching this scene closely, raised his hand and took the four Hunnic will entities away.

"I had to expend most of my strength to suppress these Hunnic will entities, and you ruined my plan!" Zena grunted, unleashing an overwhelming aura.

It's the second half of the year, everyone, let's cast our votes!