The winds of war across the Northern Continent had ground to a suffocating halt. Despite the Wu Dynasty's terrifying surge in strength, the unified front of the opposing kingdoms forced a bitter deadlock. It was within this quiet storm that Li Gang met secretly with Jin Long a few times, discussing about the future.
1 year later.
Li Gang finally revealed himself to the world. He took part in many battles on the side of the Golden Crow Dynasty, helping to forge an alliance between them and the Wei Dynasty.
When he met Wei Han again, Wei Han was both surprised and afraid. After all, he had already noticed clues regarding Li Gang's schemes. Retaking control of the Wei Dynasty was not hard. Their forces were already split between the Wu and Shu Dynasties, and Li Gang had Mo Tiancheng on his side.
Jin Long was already in awe of Li Gang after realizing how he had defeated Lei and Huang. He finally understood why his sister told him to let Li Gang rule. Li Gang was a born genius, rarely seen in a millennium. Meanwhile, Lei Zhenyu became an important general fighting alongside Shi Tian.
The Golden Crow, Wei, and Shu Dynasties allied together and attacked the Wu Dynasty. With three powers pressing from three directions, the Wu Dynasty's hopes kept shrinking.
5 years later.
Li Gang and Jin Long secretly met with King Wu Xian and Guo Chen.
Li Gang stated his terms straightforwardly. "You already know there is no hope for the Wu Dynasty if things go on like this."
Guo Chen's face was serious. He looked at Li Gang, understanding that everything that had happened recently was caused by this very person. His gaze was scrutinizing. He asked, "What is your idea, Master Ren?"
Li Gang replied, "Unification! Isn't this what you have always wanted?"
Guo Chen smiled faintly. "We wanted it, but if we aren't the ones ruling, then why should we give up? We would rather lose bravely than kneel down and give up our kingdom!"
Li Gang shook his head. "I didn't say you have to give up your kingdom."
Wu Xian and Guo Chen were both surprised.
Wu Xian asked calmly, "So what is it that you came here for?"
Li Gang smiled. "A peace treaty."
Wu Xian narrowed his eyes. "State your terms."
Li Gang nodded. He stood up and explained, "You have already witnessed that the world is changing. Ever since the catastrophe, the upper limit of the world has increased, and it is still increasing. Various talents are slowly appearing." He glanced at Guo Chen and smiled. "I want the four dynasties to rule as they do now, but all under one banner. The Northern Continent shall be unified, but each individual dynasty can rule their own territory as they wish. I will not interfere with how you govern your country."
Wu Xian's eyes narrowed. He looked at Li Gang and understood his true goal. Li Gang wanted to be the controller of all four dynasties, while entirely avoiding the burden of daily governance. This might seem useless at first, but it held massive advantages.
First, Li Gang would gain absolute influence. He could open Renhuo Trading branches across the entire Northern Continent. Second, he would gain massive political power, moving through the continent without any restrictions. Third, he would secure boundless manpower. Every soldier from every dynasty would be forced to contribute if a situation ever arose.
Wu Xian said calmly, "This needs to be discussed. I cannot decide such a big matter immediately."
Li Gang smiled. "You have plenty of time. Just don't wait until Wu's complete defeat, otherwise, we will have to change the political map of the Northern Continent with one less dynasty."
Wu Xian's fists clenched. He knew it was a blatant threat, but he could not do anything. He was weak now, and the weak are always exploited by the strong.
The battles continued, and finally, Wu Xian decided to agree to Li Gang's terms.
However, in order to solidify his own influence and permanently cripple the Wu Dynasty's massive power, Li Gang staged one final, crucial battle against the Wu Dynasty's elite warriors obtained from the Forbidden Land. He ruthlessly slaughtered 200 Rank 4 Warriors and 10 Rank 5 Warriors. These warriors had sacrificed their Spiritual Imprints in the Forbidden Land to forcibly boost their battle strength to Rank 4 and Rank 5. Otherwise, such a strong force could not possibly exist in the Northern Continent.
Li Gang did this to prevent the Wu Dynasty from going back on its word after the dust settled.
Thus, the chaotic era of the Northern Continent finally came to a close. The four kings remained on their thrones, but the true ruler who held all their lifelines was now a single man hidden in the shadows. The Great Unification War had ended, but his true reign had just begun.
Questions and Answers
Question 1: How did Li Gang know when Lei would leave the Golden Crow Dynasty? Jin Long had created a hidden identity for Shi Tian, and everything was done secretly, so how did Li Gang know when Lei would leave so that he could send the letter through Zudas without Lei being aware?
Answer: Li Gang didn't know that. Zudas had no way of knowing it either. Li Gang merely told Zudas to send the letter as soon as possible. He knew it would take at least 4-5 more days for Zudas to send the letter to Jin Long, and it would have been enough time for Lei to leave the capital. This was because from the 16th to the 26th, there was a 10-day window where Lei would have controlled Shi Tian's body. Li Gang used 10 days as his bottom line for Lei to leave.
With Jin Long ascending to Rank 7 and the deep relationship between Jin Long and Shi Tian, it was impossible for Lei to be at ease, especially when he lacked Shi Tian's memories and couldn't always control the body. Li Gang believed Lei would leave the capital within 5-6 days by some means, but to be cautious and avoid unforeseen circumstances, he set the deadline at 10 days.
Question 2: What if Lei didn't go to Prince Jin Bo?
Answer: The arrangement with Jin Bo was just a side dish. Even if Chu You didn't go to Prince Jin Bo, the rest of the strategy would work. Zudas could still get help from Jin Long without Lei's awareness. The only reason he sent Chu You was to increase the chances, because Li Gang didn't know beforehand where Huang would take him. As a result, his first priority was to break the deadlock and regain his freedom so he could have room to maneuver. He wanted to make as many people search for him as possible. With Jin Bo, he merely wanted to pull Lei into the game to find him. Once he retained his freedom, he could find other ways to contact Lei.
Question 3: What was Li Gang's original arrangement before the two Monarchs took over his body?
Answer: Originally, Li Gang entered the battlefield with the idea that if he lost and was captured, with his Spatial Order rendered useless, he could blackmail Lei with his son to protect himself temporarily. Lei wouldn't trust Li Gang's mere words, but once he protected him temporarily, Li Gang could think of a way to prove that his son was alive and under his control. Lei would never allow Huang to kill Li Gang before getting information on his son. Lei could easily connect the dots and know that Li Gang must have made arrangements in the southern port to bring his son back, since that was the only way to bring him to the Northern Continent for blackmail.
Li Gang was fully prepared for this possibility. He gave Wu Meng the premium token of the Global Commerce and Trade Chamber for this exact reason. He wanted Wu Meng to purchase anything needed to escape with Lei and Huang's children if a situation arose. Wu Meng wasn't aware of the Monarchs' involvement, and he was very cautious. Therefore, there was no possibility of Lei and Huang approaching him, nor any possibility of Wu Meng approaching them to betray Li Gang. Wu Meng only knew the mission was dangerous, and with his cautious nature, his first action upon realizing someone was tracking him would be to escape.
There was a second reason he gave Wu Meng the premium token. The premium token allows one to trade with others remotely through spatial teleportation. Li Gang had created a new identity within this token. So if he obtained another premium token—which he could easily get from Lei or Huang—he would be able to communicate with Wu Meng, but Lei and Huang could not. This would allow him to prove the existence of Lei's son, thus gaining full leverage over him.
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A/N: I've answered everything I could anticipate. If there are any lingering questions or unresolved plotlines, let me know in the comments and I will gladly address them!