In the towering and strict cement fortress, in the spacious and empty hall, the cold stone steps are covered with red carpets.
This is Norton Castle, located in the center of Norton City, where the captains of ten thousand hold discussions and host ceremonial priestly activities.
In the classical national language of the Norton Province, "Norton" means conquest.
After the Eastern Army occupied this place, they built this military fortress named Norton in memory of Marshal Julius.
Over the next century or so, this fortress located on the plain gradually developed into a large settlement with a population of over one million.
Not only is this the oldest military and engineering technical school in the entire legion, it is also the capital of the Eastern Legion and the place where the entire legion adheres most closely to tradition.
Of course, this is a bit far-fetched now.
At this moment, a group of Wilantes wearing golden armor and scarlet cloaks were holding candles and facing the ten-meter-tall full-length statue of Marshal Julius, with solemn expressions and solemn words in their hearts.
his admiration.
The golden color and scarlet cloak may not seem very appropriate for a funeral, but it is a unique way of mourning for the Weirant people, and it is the highest standard of etiquette.
All because their marshal once said——
"There is no need to be afraid and sad about death, it is the final destination of all life."
"If one day I sleep like this, you should put on golden armor and scarlet cloak, hold a torch high to say goodbye to me, and scatter flowers to me, just like cheering my triumph."
Perhaps Julius just said this casually when he was in the mood, but for a long time afterwards, the people of Wilant held funerals this way.
It was not until several fires broke out in the Triumph City that the local survivors combined the torches and flowers in their hands and replaced them with hot yet gentle candles.
As for the tradition of wearing gold armor and scarlet cloak, it has been preserved, and there is even a lot of emphasis on the weight of the gold armor and the purity of the gold.
Generally speaking, the value of the sacrificial vessels used by people is directly proportional to the glory of the buried person during his lifetime.
It is precisely for this reason that almost everyone standing here to mourn Marshal Julius carries two hundred kilograms of armor.
Without the use of an exoskeleton, probably only the Wilantes with strong martial arts can carry such a heavy load.
Standing in front of everyone, Saren, who was wearing gold armor, looked solemn and solemn, and gently placed the pure gold candlestick in his hand on the stone steps in front of the statue.
Up to this moment, the ceremony is already halfway through.
Next, the captains came forward one after another and placed the candlesticks in front of the statue to "wake up" for Lord Julius until all the candles were extinguished.
Saren quietly stepped aside and gently moved his shoulders, which were a little sore from the weight of the gold.
At this moment, a confidant walked up to him and lowered his voice.
"...There is no action on the alliance's border, it is still the same as before, but the performance of Bicester Town is a bit nervous, including the troops of the Honey Badger Kingdom, which have also gathered."
Saren tilted his head slightly and said in a very soft voice.
"Don't pay attention to them, just keep watching the alliance's actions."
Both Bicester Town and Honey Badger Kingdom are nothing more than ants to the Eastern Legion.
It seemed that the Alliance had guessed what he meant, and indeed had no intention of taking advantage of him.
As long as all the troops are transferred to the east, the changes in Triumph City will be unaffected by interference.
And when the time comes, they will be able to become independent naturally, and even maintain a good relationship with their old club, Triumph City.
After all, that was the starting point of the Weiland people's expedition, and he didn't want to make the relationship too tense with the guys back home.
No civil war.
This is the best outcome for all parties. After all, there are still many Weirant people who regard Triumph City as their spiritual home, even many of the captains under his command do the same.
Although it was inappropriate to smile at a funeral, the corners of his mouth could not help but curl up into a slight smile.
Sure enough, it is always a pleasure to play chess with smart people.
The confidant standing aside lowered his voice and continued.
"One more thing...the Southern Legion sent an envoy."
Saren said casually,
"Let him dry for a while."
The confidant hesitated for a moment and continued in a low voice.
"But...it was the envoy of the commander of Tire's army who came. He brought an instant messaging device and claimed that he represented Tire himself."
Upon hearing this, Saren sighed impatiently.
"Let him wait for me in the side hall."
The confidant said respectfully.
"yes."
…
In the hall on one side of the castle, a travel-worn messenger was standing not far from the door.
Seeing the commander of the Saren Army walking in from the door, he quickly bowed and saluted.
However, Saren strode up to him without even looking at him. He directly grabbed the silver tray from his hand, pressed the button and threw it on the cabinet beside him.
A light blue light appeared in the room, and soon a powerful figure appeared not far from him.
That is exactly Tyr's holographic image.
Looking at Saren, who was wearing golden armor, Tyr was obviously stunned for a moment.
"What are you doing?"
Saren opened his arms and said matter-of-factly.
"As you can see, I am mourning Marshal Julius with my brothers in Triumph City. I would like to ask you, what are you doing?"
Seeing his calm and calm expression, Tier couldn't help but feel a surge of anger in his heart.
This guy is still in the mood to hold a funeral!
Now not only the alliance and enterprises, but also the free state of the Great Rift Valley have declared a state of war with the Southern Army.
Originally, when he saw that the Eastern Legion finally took a hard turn and dispatched the combat troops to Falcon City in the east of the desert, he thought that things had finally turned around. However, after waiting for a long time, he did not see any further action from these guys.
Those troops were like decorations, which made everyone in the Southern Army happy in vain.
However, thinking that he was asking for help after all, Tier suppressed the anger in his heart and just asked in strong terms.
"Is now the time to do this?"
Saren looked at him with a smile, his eyes full of interest, like looking at a funny clown.
In the past, he still had to pretend to maintain the dignity between the two parties.
But now, the two sides are no longer on the same level.
He was about to say something to ridicule this guy, but unexpectedly, the commander of the Tire Army spoke before him.
"Listen... our legion is facing an unprecedented threat. The city of Triumph has fallen into the hands of foreigners, and our brothers and sisters are trapped in the quagmire of war. If we continue to have bad feelings at this time, no one can save us.
us--"
"It's just that there is an extra alien consul. It scares you. Is this a big deal?"
Saren interrupted him with a mocking laugh and continued slowly.
"As for the quagmire, could it be that I pushed you into it?"
Tyr's eyes widened.
"you!"
"That's enough, Tyr. I know what you are thinking, but I will not be fooled by you."
Saren had a disappointed expression on his face and had lost interest in him.
"Let me not talk about my friends in the New World. Let me just ask you. After taking ten thousand steps back, I marched my troops forward, captured the city of Triumph, and restored your so-called orthodoxy. Will you recognize me as the marshal of the legion?
"
Tyr was speechless for a moment and was about to speak, but was stopped by Saren who raised his hand.
"You don't have to answer me. You know the answer very well in your heart. It's not just you, but also the friends in the New World and the friends in the north... There is only one marshal, and that is Julius, and now that he is dead, he will not
No more."
After a pause, he added another sentence in a cold and emotionless tone.
"The Legion is history."
Drag him into the water?
Don’t even think about it!
At the same time as he said these words, he walked to the side of the cabinet and closed the silver-white disc.
The light blue holographic beam quickly shrunk into a line, and then disappeared from the empty room.
He threw the thing back into the messenger's hand. Seeing that the messenger didn't move for a long time, Saren scolded him impatiently.
"What are you waiting for here? Are you waiting for me to treat you to dinner? Go back to where you came from."
"yes……"
The messenger lowered his head unwillingly, but finally turned around and left.
Watching the envoy leave, Saren couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth with a trace of mockery, but soon he frowned again.
Something's not quite right.
This guy doesn't look like the Tyr he knew...
At least in his impression, Tire was not the kind of guy who would bow his head and ask for help.
Don't even talk about bowing your head to ask for help.
The taciturn guy actually had the patience to reason with him. It sounded like the sun was rising in the west.
But Saren didn't take it too seriously. After all, people always change. Maybe that guy was really pushed into a hurry?
After gently moving his sore shoulders, he strode back to the main hall of the castle.
The captains of ten thousand men came forward one after another and had completed the ceremony.
I saw bright candles swaying under the giant statue more than ten meters high.
The funeral has entered its second half.
When the candle is extinguished, they will have completely sent away the heroic soul of Lord Julius.
In the end, Saren did not squeeze out a few fake tears as Chu Guang guessed.
However, he still put away the smile on his face and walked under the statue with swaying candlelight with an expression of compassion.
This is the last moment.
"Infinitely glorious Lord Julius, thank you for giving your people endless bread, milk and land. We will remember your teachings and continue to move forward with the loyalty and bravery you taught us..."
"As the first emperor and prime minister of the Eastern Empire, I will shoulder the mission entrusted to me by history."
"May your heroic soul rest in peace forever in the Glory Academy——"
"Your children will always remember you."
…
It was not just the Eastern Legion—or the newly established Eastern Empire—that declared independence.
At the same time that the City of Triumph announced that it would hold the funeral of His Majesty Marshal Julius three days later, the Northern Army and the Western Army also announced their independence one after another.
The former established the Northern Empire and supported Commander Walter as the emperor, while the latter established the New World Federation, and the citizens' assembly and the tribunes unanimously appointed Pompey, the commander of the Legion, as prime minister and "first citizen".
So far, the legion has ceased to exist in name only, and the land of more than 30 million square kilometers has been broken into several pieces, but among the group of unspeakably loyal captains, not even a few people who miss it can be found.
After all, their allegiance has always been to Marshal Julius alone.
Even Marshal Julius was relieved in his last words, and naturally they had no reason to continue to persist.
What's more, after so many things happened, they had already had enough of the awkwardness of being seemingly inseparable.
Although there has been no further action in Triumph City, judging from the preliminary intentions reached by the consuls and various factions, it seems that it is only a matter of time before the "Vailant Alliance" is officially established.
In the end, the only one that didn't move seemed to be the Southern Army.
Apart from condemning the "Triumph City Traitors", the Southern Legion authorities took no further action.
Obviously, they who were focused on the gambling table of Borneo did not expect that things would develop like this, nor did they expect that the other three legions would give up so decisively and thoroughly.
Now, they are the only ones left on this racing train...
At the same time, on the west side of the majestic blue waves of the Borneo Sea, jet-black landing ships were sailing towards the west side of the Borneo Sea under the escort of the South China Sea Alliance fleet!
The troops packed with landing ships are none other than the Enterprise's 100th Mountain Division.
They have participated in the Torch War before and are among the few fighting elites in the company.
Now that the nuclear bomb launched by the Southern Army has completely touched the back of Ideal City, even the directors of the Endpoint Group sitting on the far left on the board of directors will no longer talk about the value of peace.
They will use the most thorough method to make those grinning beasts surrender!
Inside the shaking cabin.
Tang Feng, who was sitting on the seat, was adjusting the exoskeleton armor on his body, trying to establish a connection with the three individual drones in the backpack behind him, and tested the normality of the data port.
Since the battle with the Church of the Torch, the Council has further upgraded their equipment.
Now they are not only armed to the teeth, but have become complete war machines!
It is no exaggeration to say that in the past they had to set up their guns and aim, but now they can kill their opponents with just a thought!
Of course, this is only theoretical, and you may encounter any situation on the battlefield.
Sitting next to Tang Feng, a soldier chewing gum couldn't help but grin.
"I never thought that one day we would fight against friends who we fought alongside in the past."
Tang Feng didn't speak, but the machine gunner in the team intervened.
"There are some differences between the Southern Army and the Eastern Army, right?"
Another young man sitting across from everyone said.
"Like the Alliance and the South Sea Alliance?"
The soldier on the side said with a smile.
"Haha...it doesn't seem to be a big difference."
Everyone chatted about one thing or another, dispelling the depressive atmosphere in the cabin.
At this time, an officer stepped into the cabin and intervened in the conversation of the young men.
"It is precisely because we have fought side by side that when our friends fall into the swamp, we have to reach out and pull them out of the mud pit."
One soldier smiled and raised his hands.
"You're right, sir, but I just want to ask, why can't they get out on their own?"
"Because if we wait any longer we will be covered in mud by them. Next time you interrupt, remember to report it, otherwise I will let you swim over here."
The officer glared hard at the talkative guy, then looked at the young men in the cabin, and continued shouting with a loud voice.
"Okay, boys, the chatter is over. The Alliance's Jungle Corps and the First Division of the Valantian Expeditionary Force have broken down the defenses in the Evernight Port area and secured the landing dock for us!"
"They used one division of troops to withstand the counterattack of five divisions for us. These guys are a bunch of ruthless people, but now it's time for the real ruthless characters to come on stage!"
"You have only one mission! Immediately after landing, turn on your battlefield guidance system and cooperate with our self-propelled armor to advance along the offensive route! Advance! Advance again—!"