286: A frenzied troop buildup shook the entire universe.

"Your Majesty, conquering just one dilapidated low-magic world has raised our ranking by nearly a hundred places!"

Inside the Hall of Miraculous Mist, Fang Xuanling looked at the new divine ranking list, his face filled with incredulous surprise.

"If we could conquer a few more worlds like this, wouldn't we quickly break into the top hundred, or even the top ten?"

"Chancellor Fang, that's not entirely accurate."

Li Jing, the Minister of War, shook his head, his expression solemn as he spoke.

"This time, General Bai Qi was able to proceed so smoothly for two reasons. First, we were fully prepared and caught the enemy off guard."

"Second, the world called Azeroth itself was in a state of constant internal strife and scattered power."

"The most important point is that the strongest forces in that world were Sealed and simply not brought into play."

"If next time we are matched with a high-martial world, or even a Cultivation world, that is a solid block and where everyone is a soldier, then the battle probably won't be so easy."

Li Jing's analysis was like a bucket of cold water poured over everyone's heads.

Indeed.

This victory had too many elements of chance and Luck.

They could not let this temporary victory go to their heads.

"My beloved minister Li, what you say is very true."

Li Chengqian nodded approvingly.

"Only by being vigilant in times of peace can one remain undefeated in a hundred battles."

"However..."

His tone shifted again, a glint of fierce madness flashing in his eyes!

"We don't have time to slowly and steadily advance!"

"There are only ten thousand years until the next divine ranking list settlement!"

"In these ten thousand years, we must expand and plunder at the fastest speed and in the most insane way!"

"We must sweep through the myriad heavens like locusts!"

"Bring back all the resources we can see, all the Luck we can devour!"

"Only then can we survive this cruel battle royale! And live very well!"

Li Chengqian's words made all the Civil and Military Officials feel a chill in their hearts!

From His Majesty's words, they sensed an unprecedented... urgency and madness!

"Proclaim my decree!"

Li Chengqian suddenly stood up from his imperial throne!

He spread his arms, as if to embrace the entire Universe!

"The construction of the 'Zhou Tian Star Formation Array' must be accelerated! Within five hundred years, I want to see the array completely finished!"

"The implementation of 'Universal Education' must be accelerated! Within a hundred years, I want my Great Tang to have no illiterates! Everyone can embark on the Immortal Path!"

"The ' People are soldiers' plan must be pushed forward relentlessly, regardless of cost!"

"From today onwards, in my Great Tang Immortal Kingdom, the service period for all eligible youths shall be extended from three years to... ten years!"

"All Heavenly Soldier legions shall be expanded a hundredfold! No! A thousandfold!"

"Within three thousand years, I want to create an army of over ten billion... 'Tiger-Wolf Soldiers'!"

"I want the 'myriad heavens battlefield' to be open twenty-four hours a day, without interruption!"

"Ten legions! No! A hundred legions! Attack simultaneously for me!"

"I will use the bones of our enemies to pave the road for my Great Tang to reach the peak of the myriad heavens!"

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Every word from Li Chengqian was like a heavy bomb, exploding with a roar within the Hall of Miraculous Mist!

Everyone was completely stunned by his extremely insane

Ten billion Heavenly Soldiers?!

One hundred legions simultaneously conquering the myriad heavens?!

This... this is simply insane!

This is no longer just militarism!

This is simply draining all the potential of the entire Great Tang Immortal Kingdom to its limit!

No!

It's beyond the limit!

"Your Majesty... think twice!"

Zhangsun Wuji, the Minister of Revenue, was the first to step forward, sweating profusely as he pleaded.

"Such a large-scale military expansion and preparation for war, our Great Tang's finances and resources, I fear, simply cannot sustain it!"

"Let alone three thousand years, I'm afraid our national treasury will be completely emptied in less than three hundred years!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Duan Lun, the Minister of Works, also quickly echoed.

"The construction of the 'Zhou Tian Star Formation Array' is already extremely costly. If such terrifying military expansion is carried out simultaneously, then... then it's simply unimaginable!"

"It's fine."

However, facing the remonstrances of his officials, Li Chengqian merely waved his hand indifferently.

"Money is not an issue."

"Resources are even less of an issue."

He walked to the center of the Hall of Miraculous Mist.

With a wave of his hand!

Buzz—!

A massive portal, piled high with countless corpses and resentful souls, exuding an evil and deathly aura, slowly appeared in the hall!

On the portal, two twisted ancient demonic characters were carved—

"Hell"!

"This is..."

Looking at this eerie portal that exuded endless ominous aura, all the Civil and Military Officials' expressions changed!

From this portal, they felt a terrifying aura that made even them feel a throbbing in their hearts!

"This is the lair of an outer demonic god that I suppressed incidentally when I conquered the Doupo world."

Li Chengqian explained lightly.

"Inside, that demonic god accumulated all the wealth and resources plundered from the myriad heavens over millions of years."

"The quantity is so vast that it is enough to support us in a world-destroying war that lasts for a hundred thousand years!"

"Now, do you still think money is a problem?"

Hiss—!

Hearing this, all the Civil and Military Officials gasped in unison!

An outer demonic god's accumulation over millions of years?!

This... what a terrifying amount of wealth is this?!

They looked at the Gate of Hell, which was like a bottomless pit, their eyes filled with endless shock and... fanaticism!

With this inexhaustible "war fund"!

Then His Majesty's seemingly insane plan just now became entirely possible!

"Your subjects... were foolish!"

"Your Majesty, with your profound foresight, your subjects prostrate themselves in admiration!"

Zhangsun Wuji, Duan Lun, and others no longer had any objections, kneeling down in unison, their faces filled with shame and worship!

"Since there are no problems."

"Then execute it immediately!"

Li Chengqian waved his sleeve.

"I want to make all the myriad heavens tremble under the iron hooves of my Great Tang!"

...As Li Chengqian's insane commands were issued one after another.

The entire Great Tang Immortal Kingdom, this terrifying war machine, completely entered an overloaded operating state!

Countless resources were continuously transported out from the "Gate of Hell".

Then, they were poured into various fields such as military, construction, and education!

Huge military factories rose from the ground on various planets!

Ferocious interstellar battleships were frantically produced!

Countless young people answered the call and eagerly joined the army!

The number of Heavenly Soldier legions surged at a terrifying, geometrically increasing rate!

It only took five hundred years!

The number of Heavenly Soldiers in the Great Tang Immortal Kingdom had skyrocketed from the original few million to a terrifying... five billion!

Moreover, these five billion were not ordinary soldiers!

They were battle-hardened elites, equipped with the most sophisticated immortal armor and weapons, Cultivating the most top-tier killing Cultivation Technique, and having undergone countless baptisms of blood and fire on the "myriad heavens battlefield"!

At the same time.

On the "myriad heavens battlefield," the fighting was even more intense, with blood flowing like rivers!

One hundred Heaven-conquering legions, led by peerless famous generals such as Bai Qi, Lü Bu, and Li Jing, were like a hundred invincible sharp knives!

They frantically traversed through various low-level Small Worlds!

Wherever they passed, they killed gods and Buddhas alike!

Countless worlds wailed and shattered under their iron hooves!

Countless civilizations were destroyed and perished under their military might!

Massive amounts of World Origin and Luck gathered from the myriad heavens into the Great Tang Immortal Kingdom, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea!

And the Great Tang Immortal Kingdom's ranking on the "myriad heavens divine ranking" also soared like a rocket!

Ninth hundred!

Eighth hundred!

Fifth hundred!

...When the time came to the first millennium.

The Great Tang Immortal Kingdom's ranking had already impressively rushed to... [One Hundred and First!]

Only one step away from the top hundred!

And the Great Tang Immortal Kingdom's insane expansion and bloody conquests, like a mad dog, over the past millennium.

Finally attracted the attention of countless powerful existences in the myriad heavens!

For a time, countless gazes from the entire Chaos Universe turned towards this suddenly rising, mad world!

"Great Tang Immortal Kingdom? Where did these lunatics come from?"

"Within a millennium, they annihilated tens of thousands of Small Worlds? This... this is simply monstrous!"

"Their World Lord is named Li Chengqian? Who exactly is this person? Why are his actions so domineering, so reckless?"

"Hmph! He's just a parvenu who got lucky! Relying on a bit of fortuitous encounter, he doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth! Just wait, he'll hit a wall sooner or later!"

"That's right! The top hundred on the myriad heavens divine ranking are all truly ruthless characters! Each one has profound foundations and countless powerhouses! This Great Tang Immortal Kingdom wants to break in? That's simply wishful thinking!"

Countless Divine Thoughts intertwined and discussed in the Chaos Void Realm.

Some were shocked, some disdainful, some gloating.

But without exception.

They all did not favor this crazy, newly risen world.

However, they did not know.

A greater storm was brewing.

A gamble, enough to shake the entire myriad heavens!

Is about to begin!