"Lord Lin."
A clear female voice ca from the left.
Lin Feng turned his head and saw Jiang Zhaoyue leaning slightly toward him, nodding in greeting.
There was a hint of a smile on her face, but the exhaustion in her eyes was unmistakable.
"Lord Jiang," Lin Feng said, cupping his fists. "Congratulations on reaching the county-level."
Jiang ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) Zhaoyue smiled. "The sa to you. Lord Lin's strength is what truly surprises ."
"The entire Nightmare World is talking about last night's battle. You are truly deserving of the title of the number one county-level lord."
Lin Feng waved his hand. "Lord Jiang, you flatter . I should also thank the Yuehua Guild for their support; without you all, things wouldn't have gone so smoothly over in Qingmu County."
Jiang Zhaoyue shook her head, her tone sincere. "It was just mutual aid. After this eting, if the Crescent Moon Territory ever falls into trouble, I might have to ask for Lord Lin's support."
"No problem," Lin Feng replied straightforwardly.
Ma Dehou chid in from the side with a chuckle. "Lord Jiang is indeed even more heroic and beautiful than the legends say."
"The two of you—one a newly promoted county-level lord and the other the number one county-level lord—should get closer in the future."
Jiang Zhaoyue smiled but didn't respond.
Lin Feng simply nodded as well.
Before the three could finish their pleasantries, a majestic voice ca from the front of the council hall.
"Silence."
The entire council hall fell silent instantly.
In front of the round table, a middle-aged man in a black uniform stood on a floating podium.
His expression was solemn, his eyes sharp, and an invisible sense of pressure radiated from him.
The Director of the Great Xia Nightmare Affairs Bureau—Zhou Guosheng.
His gaze slowly swept across the room, from the three gold chairs to the nine silver chairs, then the thirty-two copper chairs, finally lingering for a mont on the Copper Seat area.
In that instant, Lin Feng felt Zhou Guosheng's gaze pause on him before moving away.
"The eting begins." Zhou Guosheng's voice wasn't loud, but every word was like a nail driven into everyone's ears.
"The first item on the agenda—reporting last night's losses."
With a wave of his hand, a light screen unfolded in the center of the hall. A string of numbers appeared before everyone's eyes:
Remaining village-level territories: 1,052.
Remaining town-level territories: 215.
Remaining county-level territories: 32.
Silence filled the council hall for a long ti. No one spoke, and no one whispered.
Those numbers were like cold stones weighing on everyone's chests.
Lin Feng leaned against the back of his chair, staring at those three lines of numbers.
He rembered that during the first Lords Assembly, there were over five thousand village-level territories, over seven hundred town-level, and sixty-seven county-level.
Now, only one-fifth of the village-level remained, the town-level had decreased by two-thirds, and the county-level had dropped by more than half.
The General Bureau had temporarily disabled public territory status queries and the display of numbers in live broadcast rooms.
Ordinary citizens couldn't see these numbers; they couldn't see how much of Great Xia's foundation remained.
However, every lord present had the authority to view the real-ti status.
They had known for a long ti, but hearing Zhou Guosheng say it aloud still made their throats tighten.
Zhou Guosheng didn't say much more, waving his hand to switch the light screen.
"The second item on the agenda—the cause of the Blood Moon's appearance."
The atmosphere in the hall changed instantly.
Everyone instinctively leaned forward, their eyes fixed intently on Zhou Guosheng.
Why did the Blood Moon appear? What was the root cause of this disaster?
Everyone desperately wanted to know the answer to this question. Now, it was about to be revealed.
Zhou Guosheng's voice remained steady, but every word was like tempered iron. "Korea has taken the initiative to inform us that the appearance of the Blood Moon is related to a Special Village Establishnt Order they obtained."
The council hall erupted into an uproar.
"A Special Village Establishnt Order?"
"My god, then it's no wonder, no wonder..."
"Korea? They got a Special Village Establishnt Order?"
"No wonder the Blood Moon appeared. Eighty years ago, when the USA got the first one, the Blood Moon hung in the sky as well."
Discussions broke out one after another; so were shocked, so had a sudden realization, and others shook their heads and sighed.
Lin Feng sat in the Copper Seat, his expression calm, but his fingers tightened slightly.
He possessed a Special Village Establishnt Order himself.
If the Blood Moon was caused by it, then his Village Establishnt Order... He suppressed the turmoil in his heart and continued to listen.
Zhou Guosheng waited for the chatter to die down before continuing:
"After Korea used the Special Village Establishnt Order to establish a village, they faced a double-strength Level 4 Nightmare Tide."
"Furthermore, because the village was established too close to Jinzhou City, the Level 4 Nightmare Tides from both sides rged, subjecting Jinzhou City to a quadruple Nightmare Tide. This was the direct cause of Jinzhou City's destruction."
Low gasps of realization echoed through the hall.
"So that's how it was..."
"Establishing a village near a city-level territory was originally for safety, but who knew the Nightmare World wouldn't play by the rules."
Lin Feng's brow furrowed slightly. So that was how the quadruple Nightmare Tide in Jinzhou City ca to be.
But the Korean decision-makers couldn't be blad for this.
A Special Village Establishnt Order was too important; establishing a village would definitely require choosing the safest location.
Who could have known the Nightmare World would pull a move like sending a Level 4 Nightmare Tide at a village-level territory?
If it were him, he would also have built the village in the place closest to Fenghuo County.
Putting himself in their shoes, anyone would have done the sa.
Zhou Guosheng raised his hand for silence.
"The third item on the agenda—Intelligence on Foreign Races."
The air in the hall grew heavy instantly as everyone focused their minds and listened intently.
They had to be serious; the Blood Moon, the double Nightmare Tide, and the destroyed territories from last night were already in the past.
Foreign races were the number one threat all territories would face in the coming period.
Zhou Guosheng pulled up a massive map of the Nightmare World, covered in dense markings.
He started with the North Pole Region. Although that was where Great Xia's main forces were located, the situation there was equally grim.
Then he switched to the South Pole Region.
Lin Feng leaned forward slightly.
"In the South Pole Region, near Zhenyue City, there are two major foreign races," Zhou Guosheng's voice was low.
"The Orcs and the Undead Race."
On the map, two red markers were flashing. One was to the east of Zhenyue City, and the other was further to the west.
"The Orcs currently have two active forces. One is near Chidori County in Sakura Country and has already begun expanding into Sakura Country's territory."
"As of now, they have captured three of Sakura Country's county seats in succession."
"Sakura Country is currently consolidating its army, preparing for a counterattack." Zhou Guosheng paused.
"The other force is about seven hundred kiloters west of Zhenyue City, within the borders of the Tieba Kingdom. The Tieba Kingdom has only one city-level territory and has already sent out requests for help to surrounding countries."
Low murmurs rose in the hall. The Tieba Kingdom was a modest nation with dium strength, but facing foreign races, a single city-level territory was clearly insufficient.
"The Tieba Kingdom's closest neighbors are Zhenyue City and the Annan Country," Zhou Guosheng continued.
"Although the Annan Country has three city-level territories and is not weak, there are three Undead Race forces causing chaos within its borders simultaneously. The Annan Country can hardly protect itself and has already asked the Baixiang Kingdom for help."
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