Chapter 261
“Su Li has arrived!”
“The Dreaded Star is among us!”
“This place has fallen under the dominion of the Star of Death!”
With news of Su Li’s arrival spreading throughout the northwestern lands, the various tribal nations were thrown into chaos. Most of the existing tribal nations in the northwest had likely never laid eyes on Su Li in person.
Since Su Li’s appearances were exceedingly brief, those who had seen him were either deceased or enslaved. Only a small group of fortunate individuals managed to survive and return to their tribal homelands, carrying tales of Su Li’s legendary exploits deep into the expansive grasslands.
The grasslands were vast, and human populations were scarce, yet Su Li’s reputation reached every corner the wind could reach. Among the tribal nations, who frequently clashed over resources and struggled to find common ground, there was a unanimous sense of fear and agreement regarding Su Li.
Su Li! A force beyond this world!
Anyone who witnessed Su Li’s might on the battlefield would never entertain thoughts of resistance. Indeed, in recent years, Su Li has become a collective nightmare for the tribal nations. His fame had reached a point where even a weeping child would fall silent upon hearing his name.
“What should we do…?”
Atop the former site of the Onion Ridge Hoosiers, a group of barbarians huddled together, warming themselves by the fire. They couldn’t shake an inner chill despite the sweltering weather, perhaps because they had heard the name Su Li.
There were roughly a dozen men present, the current leadership of the Onion Ridge Hoosiers. After their clash with Su Li, Onion Ridge suffered grievous losses, and their entire population now numbered only tens of thousands, including the elderly and infirm.
In the past, Onion Ridge, despite its mixed heritage, boasted a population totaling in the millions. Faced with a fight for survival, the Onion Ridge Hoosiers merged their forces to resist the Great Tang’s encroachment and impede its expansion.
Onion Ridge was far removed from the Central Plains, making it logistically challenging for the Great Tang to operate there. As a result, the Onion Ridge Hoosiers had managed to secure a space for survival beneath the Great Tang’s shadow, keeping their influence north of Onion Ridge.
“What should we do?” The dozen men exchanged uneasy glances around the campfire, but none dared to answer the question.
Just how deeply did they fear Su Li? So much so that none of them dared to propose resistance.
“Onion Ridge is remote, and the land is desolate. I doubt Su Li will reach this far anytime soon…” one of the men said in a calm, confident tone.
However, after receiving no response for half a day, he awkwardly chuckled to himself as the atmosphere descended into a strange silence.
“How about we escape?” someone in the uneasy group suddenly suggested.
Surprisingly, a dozen people considered this idea seriously, believing it had a reasonable chance of success.
“We can’t win, so why not flee…”
But upon closer examination, they realized this suggestion was essentially the same as saying nothing. Onion Ridge was remote and barren, barely capable of sustaining its population of around two hundred thousand.
But where could they run to? Where could they seek refuge? The snowy mountains or the desert? Attempting to cram more than two hundred thousand people into either of those options would likely spell their doom.
Since Su Li’s triumph in the northwest, the living conditions of nearly all the tribal nations had deteriorated, resulting in the destruction of countless tribes and a significant population decline. Many had contemplated escape, and some had even made attempts, but crossing the snowy mountains and deserts proved exceedingly arduous.
“They aren’t unwilling to escape, but the natural geographical barriers in East Asia have trapped them here, clinging to life.”
“Escape… to where?”
“A few years ago, we dispatched a team to the Peacock Kingdom, but we’ve received no word since then.”
Most major tribes had made attempts, but overcoming the natural barriers of East Asia remained an insurmountable challenge. Even with the formidable might of the East Asian Monster House, they could have caused chaos once they broke free.
History provided examples like Genghis Khan’s conquest of Europe, the Huns who became a formidable force after fleeing the Han Empire, and the humble Yuezhis who rose to establish the prestigious Frost Empire. Yet, countless others had tried and perished, their stories fading into obscurity.
Escaping East Asia to secure a new territory offered only two outcomes, victory or death.
“I suggest… surrendering,” one person said in despair.
“Even if we’re captured and turned into slaves, at least we can still live,” another added.
“I heard that Su Li has been crowned king in the northwest, and this place will be Su Li’s territory in the future. They can’t just kill us all and make us slaves, right? They’ll need manpower, and there will be times when they need us,” reasoned another.
“With so few people left in the northwest, can he truly afford to exterminate us all? I refuse to believe he wouldn’t feel remorse,” someone commented.
“What? Is Su Li feeling remorse?” someone asked in confusion.
“After surrendering, the land and the population become Su Li’s wealth…”
The idea of surrender sparked a lively discussion among the group, driven by practicality. While the Tang army could still put up a fight, Su Li had no equal in the region.
These discussions about surrender overshadowed years of resistance, turning it into a mere anecdote. This situation was a reflection of the entire northwest.
A pervasive shadow fell over the land when Su Li arrived in the northwest. His reputation was known far and wide, much like the Onion Ridge Hoosiers.
Lu Dongzan and Songtsen Gampo’s reckless provocation of the Great Tang had left a stain on the history of wise rulers and ministers, with the people of the entire Northwest Hoosiers region bearing the shame.
In most people’s eyes, if it weren’t for the heedless actions of Lu Dongzan and Songtsen Gampo, the northwest would not have provoked the arrival of Su Li, the Star of Death, leading to the downfall of intact tribal powers in the region.
Faced with the Great Tang’s ambitious expansion, they could only secretly obstruct, often engaging in small-scale resistance due to the fear that the Great Tang might not adhere to fair warfare and deploy Su Li.
But now, Su Li had arrived regardless. The last time Su Li had come, the entire northwest’s population had decreased by nearly two-thirds. How much more devastation would follow this time?
Many tribes chose to flee, while numerous forces surrendered, ready to become Su Li’s subjects. Some astute leaders, recognizing the situation’s sensitivity, gathered like-minded individuals willing to submit to Su Li, seeking strategies to win his favor and avoid the horrors of armed conflict.
After a series of events triggered by Su Li’s arrival—divisions, escapes, conflicts, and mergers—the remaining population in the entire northwest numbered only around two to three million. This was across the northwest, including former Tibetan lands, Onion Ridge, Turk territories, and half of the Western Regions.
Indeed, their actions had brought disgrace upon themselves and the entire northwest region, encompassing areas such as Tubo, Onion Ridge, parts of the Western Regions, and beyond.
It was a vast land compared to the entire Great Tang, but now it was inhabited by just over three million people.