Things like Inner Qi Manifestation sound terrifying, but for an empire, possessing only thirty or forty such experts would hardly qualify it as an empire. Even Parthia, which is currently being pressed by Rome, isn't too weak in this regard.
Even the Northern Huns, who have been dead for over a hundred years, relying on the foundation and fate of an empire, can accumulate nearly a double-digit number of Inner Qi Manifestations, and among them, five even possess Legion Talent. This illustrates the vast discrepancy between a typical small country and an empire.
Gan Ning retreated north along the Malay Peninsula, which was, of course, an inevitable choice, given the enormous disparity in strength between the two sides. Even a splendid naval commander like Gan Ning couldn't bridge this gap.
