If one were to look down at this planet from space, they would see a faint, ice-blue line on the map. From the perspective of the entire planet, this line was tiny, and its creeping speed was very slow.
In a single day, this ice-blue line advanced only a very, very small distance.
The perspective returns to Esdeath.
She was currently standing atop the glacier she had created, looking down at a vast expanse of ice.
The glacier was not wide, only three hundred meters at its widest point, but it was a thousand meters high, stretching endlessly in both directions, completely isolating the ice field that led from the entire Northern Border into the Empire's interior.
It was like an ice wall separating two worlds.
And in creating the ice wall, she had even used her Divinity.
Although the rules brought by Divinity were very weak, they were enough to keep the ice wall standing on the Northern Border for decades.
The biggest conflict between the Northern Barbarians and the Imperial populace was that before every winter, the Northern Barbarians would head south to loot, kill, and plunder.
As long as the Northern Barbarians could not go south, these conflicts would naturally disappear.
Whether the Northern Barbarians would starve to death if they couldn't go south and plunder was not something she cared about.
Xia Wei neither supported nor opposed Esdeath's actions.
The Northern Barbarians were exactly like the Turkic nomadic peoples from his hometown, even more cruel.
The Northern Barbarians were primarily large tribes focused on fishing and hunting.
Every winter, fish would migrate, and wild beasts would hibernate. If they didn't store enough food, they couldn't survive the winter. To avoid starvation, all the tribes would unite and invade the Empire from the south, looting, killing, and plundering.
Wherever they went, everything would be plundered clean, and all border residents, including women and children, would be killed.
The Northern Barbarians only wanted food and supplies, not people.
Each time they went south, tens of thousands of people would loot, kill, and plunder, even wiping out smaller towns, leaving no one alive.
After plundering, they would quickly return to the glaciers and hide, making it impossible for the Imperial army to find them.
It could be said that the existence of the Northern Barbarians was entirely built upon the blood of countless Imperial citizens.
This was the most primitive struggle for survival.
If the Northern Barbarians only plundered resources and did not engage in excessive slaughter, then he would be willing to accept these barbarians.
But with those bloody massacres, he would not treat the Northern Barbarians with the lowest Divine Blessing trigger conditions.
To obtain a Divine Blessing, they would have to trigger the minimum threshold for its bestowal at more than ten times the difficulty.
Time passed bit by bit, and four days had already gone by since the Battle of the Imperial Capital.
The entire Empire was now filled with the Religious State's believers, and wherever the Religious State's believers went, they would immediately carry out the purging of evil.
Finally, priests and personnel with administrative abilities would quickly take over the order.
Under the fervent, spontaneous actions of the populace, in just a few days, all four of the Empire's major provinces were incorporated into the Religious State's domain.
It could be said that the Religious State had officially become the new era after the Empire.
The Religious State was also spontaneously called the 'Holy Theocracy' by the people at this moment.
The God's Grace were currently in full swing, hunting down those evil individuals with superhuman martial prowess across the nation.
Especially those Teigu User, and Minister Honest.
The hunt order was spread throughout every part of the country.
"Did you hear? All the Imperial assassins in the Imperial Fist Temple have been killed one by one."
"Hmph, those evil fellows thought they could escape by hiding? How could those bugs imagine the power of the God's Grace?"
"But they were quite good at escaping, especially those villains called the Four Imperial Fist Devils. It's said they were Minister Honest's attendants, and it took five God's Grace two days to track them down and kill them."
"Especially those Teigu User, of course they are no match for the God's Grace, but if they are determined to flee, they can hide quite well."
If the citizens of the Holy Theocracy were still in the Imperial era, they would be terrified of these wanted posters and would never dare to discuss them.
Now, these were just topics of conversation before and after meals for them.
Although ordinary people had not personally experienced it, after a couple of drinks at a small tavern, they would start to pontificate, as if they themselves were the God's Grace hunting down villains.
"Hey, that's nothing. My aunt's nephew's third cousin is a God's Grace. According to his friend, they have already discovered Minister Honest's hiding place."
"I heard that among Minister Honest's supporters, the greatest villain, there's a Teigu that allows for spatial transfer, which is why the God's Grace haven't been able to catch him."
"To ensure success this time, a total of fifty God's Grace have been gathered to encircle and kill him."
"Hiss—Minister Honest, that great villain, can die with a smile now."
"Yes, compared to the damned Empire, that's equivalent to all the Teigu User attacking together."
The Holy Theocracy's Western Kingdom.
For convenience, the Imperial provincial system was directly adopted, as it had been in place for a thousand years, and people were already accustomed to it.
On a deserted trade route in the Western Kingdom.
Over a hundred carriages and horses were being desperately whipped, the horses whinnying in pain.
"Damn it, hurry! Hurry! We're about to leave this damned border!" Minister Honest fiercely scolded these household servants. These were all villains who willingly helped him.
They were still alive because of him.
His original household servants either ran away or were killed by those commoners, so he had no choice but to use these people who were even baser than commoners.
He needed someone to help him transport the wealth he had plundered.
To prevent those fanatics from discovering him, he had his son intentionally let those religious fanatics discover him, and then be chased by those God's Grace.
And these people, who were even baser than commoners, secretly transported his wealth.
Heh heh, those foolish religious fanatics, commoners are commoners, even if they gain power, they are still commoners.
Nobles do not rely on strength, but on brains. Those without brains are only fit to be played in his hands.
The road he was currently taking was one he had intentionally abolished ten years ago, just in case he needed to escape.
"Heh heh heh, once I reach the Western Kingdom, I can easily become a Minister again with this wealth, and then continue to plunder the wealth of those commoners." The more Minister Honest thought about it, the smarter he felt, and he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Who in the entire Empire is as smart as me, ha ha ha, I am a born noble."
Shura, who was beside him, said admiringly, "That's right, worthy of Father. You can even toy with the Little Emperor in the palm of your hand, let alone the Western Kingdom, which is weaker than the Empire. It's not impossible to directly replace it."
"You're absolutely right, my dear son Shura, ha ha ha."
Whoosh!
Just then, a dazzling light appeared, like a flashbang, temporarily blinding their vision. Before anyone could react, they were already enveloped in a curtain of light.
Minister Honest's expression froze. The struggling villains scattered in panic. Shura's face turned ugly, and he quickly gripped his Teigu, Shangri-La.
"Damn it! Have those fanatics caught up again?!" Minister Honest was terrified. He was scared, not of death, as his son Shura would take him away, so he couldn't die. Instead, he was afraid of having to abandon all the treasures he had plundered for decades.
"Oh no! My Teigu can't teleport! How is this possible!" Shura's face changed dramatically, and he screamed in disbelief.
"What!" Minister Honest instantly shrieked like a woman in terror.