The next morning, at dawn.

Inside a courtyard in Donghai City.

Zhou Huai leaned against a soft leather sofa, holding a cup of steaming black tea in his hand.

He stared at the massive holographic projection screen on the wall in front of him.

On the screen was today's heavy spectacle that shook the entire Blue Star—Sakura Country's surrender ceremony!

A once incomparably prosperous international metropolis was now filled with ruined walls and broken debris as far as the eye could see, with black scorch marks from the sacrificial ritual and terrifying battle remaining on the ground. The autumn wind swept up ashes from the ground, giving off a desolate feeling of a fading sun.

However, in the central plaza of these ruins, a solemn and grand high platform had risen from the ground.

The Great Xia military flag fluttered loudly in the autumn wind, like a ball of burning fire, illuminating this dead land.

Around the platform, fully armed Great Xia elite soldiers stood in formation like a Great Wall of Steel, their murderous aura piercing the clouds. In the sky, hundreds of special drones hovered, transmitting the live footage to every corner of the globe via satellite signals.

Today was the official surrender ceremony where Sakura Country unconditionally surrendered to Great Xia.

Streamed live across the entire network!

In Great Xia Nation, countless people put down their work, students stopped their morning readings, and the area in front of large screens in shopping malls was packed with stopping pedestrians.

The live stream's bullet comments flooded like a breached dam, densely covering the entire screen.

"Magnificent, my Great Xia!!"

"I've finally waited for this day! I can't stop my tears at all, brothers, I'm crying like an idiot!"

"Grandpa, do you see this? We won! Sakura Country, which bullied us back then, has bowed its head completely today!"

"Long live Great Xia! Immortal army soul!"

Amidst this screen full of cheers and excitement, the live broadcast camera suddenly zoomed in.

Behind the platform, accompanied by the steady and powerful sound of military boots stepping on the ground, a tall and straight figure slowly walked into the frame.

He was dressed in a crisp Great Xia Marshal dress uniform, the gold stars on his epaulets shining brightly in the sunlight. His stance was like a pine tree, and his steps carried an invincible aura forged in mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

However, when the camera focused completely on his face, the bullet comments that had been refreshing at a rate of tens of thousands per second strangely froze for a moment.

Following that came an even more insane eruption!

"Holy crap?! Who... who is this handsome guy?!"

"This is way too handsome! My god, that gaze, that demeanor, he's literally a God of War who walked straight out of a novel!"

"In love, in love! When did the Great Xia Military Department hide such an exquisite young general? With this level of looks, he could dominate the entertainment industry right out of the gate!"

"Within one minute, I want all the information on this man!"

Just as countless netizens were frantically hitting their keyboards with heads full of confusion, the host's voice, trembling slightly from excessive excitement, came from the live broadcast:

"Dear compatriots, the one walking toward us right now is the supreme commander of this Eastern Expedition—the supreme strategic Marshal of our Great Xia Nation, Lord Zhao Qingcang!"

This single sentence was like a deep-water bomb, directly triggering a tsunami across the entire network.

The screen full of "In love" was instantly replaced by a uniform wave of question marks.

"?????"

"Host, say that again? Who is he?!"

"What's the situation? Isn't Marshal Zhao an old man in his seventies with a head full of white hair? I grew up watching his news!"

"What kind of joke is this? No matter how you look at him, this guy looks barely in his early twenties! You call this a seventy-something old man?!"

"Rejuvenated? Or did I transmigrate? What on earth is going on!"

Countless exclamations, doubts, and confusion filled the entire internet.

But Zhao Qingcang, who was at the scene, didn't care about the storm on the internet at all. His handsome, valiant face, restored to its twenty-year-old Peak state, carried a dignified majesty that commanded respect without anger.

He walked up to the microphone, his deep gaze sweeping across the Sakura Country high-level officials below the stage who were brought under escort with faces as pale as death.

Zhao Qingcang took a deep breath, and his voice into the microphone was deep.

"Compatriots of Great Xia, and witnesses from countries around the world—"

"Today, we stand here, standing above the imperial capital of Sakura Country!"

Zhao Qingcang's voice echoed over the entire Tokyo City through the loudspeakers, impassioned and soul-stirring.

"Kujo Koji of Sakura Country had wild ambitions and disregarded human morality and the Great Dao! For his own selfish desires, to resurrect his ancestor, he did not hesitate to trigger a city-wide sacrificial ritual, treating millions of innocent civilians like grass and ants!"

"The Kujo Family's crimes are monstrous and beyond count! Our Great Xia is a nation of benevolence and righteousness, an army of righteous men! We will never tolerate such inhumane, monstrous acts occurring right under our eyes!"

"Therefore, our Great Xia swore an oath to embark on an Eastern Expedition! Enforcing justice on behalf of Heaven! Crushing the conspiracy of the Kujo Family and saving the citizens of Sakura Country from dire suffering!"

"Today, evil comes to an end, and justice shall prevail!"

The resounding declaration made Great Xia netizens feel their blood boil with enthusiasm.

"Well said! An army of righteousness! Enforcing justice on behalf of Heaven!"

"The Kujo Family are a bunch of beasts, killing even their own country's people. They deserve to be wiped out!"

As Zhao Qingcang's voice fell.

A haggard middle-aged man wearing a black suit, escorted by two Great Xia soldiers, walked tremblingly onto the surrender platform.

It was none other than the representative of Sakura Country's current highest authority, the'Shen Dynasty'—Nakamura Shinichiro.

At this moment, Nakamura Shinichiro kept his head lowered, his forehead covered in fine beads of cold sweat.

Only he knew in his heart: what kind of national representative was he?

He was merely a marionette puppet pushed out by that terrifying master to go through the motions.

Nakamura Shinichiro swallowed hard, walked in front of Zhao Qingcang, and his legs went soft, nearly collapsing to his knees.

Holding the heavy surrender document in both hands, he recited the line he had rehearsed countless times in trembling voice and flawed Great Xia language:

"I... Nakamura Shinichiro, representing Sakura Country, admit defeat... accept all conditions of Great Xia Nation, and unconditionally... surrender."

After saying that, he signed his name on the surrender document, then bowed deeply, holding the document high and respectfully presenting it to Zhao Qingcang.

Zhao Qingcang glanced at him coldly, reached out his right hand wearing a white glove, and grabbed the surrender document.

At this moment.

The live broadcast room boiled over completely!

"We won! Long live Great Xia!"

"The arrogant Sakura Country has finally knuckled under to us!"

"Magnificent, my Great Xia! Great Xia is awesome (voice breaking)!!!"

Countless fireworks exploded in various places, and countless people raised their glasses to celebrate together.

Everyone thought that this historical surrender ceremony would end with Perfection right here.

However, the live feed was not cut off.

Zhao Qingcang handed the surrender document to the adjutant beside him, turned around, and faced the microphone once again.

His expression was a hundred times more solemn and majestic than when he announced victory just now.

"Compatriots, the surrender ceremony has concluded."

"However, today's live broadcast is not over yet. Because next, besides the surrender, I will also hold a special conferment ceremony here for a true hero."