Touman the Great initially scoffed, thinking the old man was just making things up.

But as he listened, his expression gradually became serious, and his brows furrowed more and more tightly, like a twisted rope.

The weapons the old man described were completely beyond his understanding of war.

This is something I've never heard of or seen before.

Although he was far away on the grasslands, he knew a little about the military situation in the Central Plains, much better than this old man.

But he had never even heard of any of the things the old man was talking about!

If what the old man said is true, then Shannan County is no ordinary place!

In other words,

Touman sat up straight, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes.

"That guy named Lu Yan, in just a few years, developed a dilapidated small town with a population of less than two thousand into a town with a population of one million?"

"They still reigned supreme in the heart of the Central Plains, carving out a new world and defeating the barbarians until they cried for their fathers and mothers, utterly powerless to fight back?"

The Touman Emperor's tone was filled with disbelief; he seemed to have heard something out of the blue, his eyes practically popping out of their sockets.

The old man rubbed his hands awkwardly, his face plastered with a fawning smile.

"Yes... Your Majesty, this Lu Yan is no ordinary person. He is practically a god descended from heaven, capable of anything!"

"This time, I've also brought two treasures I seized from Shannan County—a thunderclap bomb and a musket!"

With a wave of his hand, two burly men behind him stepped forward tremblingly, carrying a thunderbolt and a musket.

It was carefully placed in front of Touman the Great.

The two burly men were so nervous that they were trembling all over and sweating profusely.

They were afraid that they might accidentally blow up these two "magical artifacts".

Touman the Great looked at the dark, pitted lump of iron in front of him.

And there was that thing that looked like a fire poker; my heart was pounding.

A strange sense of crisis arose within me. Is this thing really that powerful?

Is this old man trying to fool me?

How do I use it?

He asked in a deep voice, his words tinged with doubt.

"Please allow me to demonstrate for Your Majesty. This item is extremely powerful. Please, Your Majesty, step aside!"

The old man bowed respectfully and made a "please" gesture.

They were afraid that the Toman Emperor might be blown away by a sudden explosion.

Touman the Great nodded, got up and walked out of the tent.

He wanted to see what this old man was up to.

The old man carefully lit the thunderbolt, and the flame shot out with a "whoosh".

The old man held his breath and suddenly threw the thunderbolt into the open space in the distance.

"boom!"

A deafening roar shook the entire grassland.

Amidst the billowing dust, a huge crater suddenly appeared, as if it had been struck by a meteorite.

Touman the Great's pupils shrank suddenly, and his mouth opened wide enough to fit a goose egg.

This power was greater than any weapon he had ever seen!

He even suspected that this thing might be able to blow a hole in the sky.

Then, the old man picked up the musket and skillfully loaded it with gunpowder and lead bullets.

Aiming at a scarecrow dressed in heavy armor a hundred paces away.

This scarecrow is made of the finest materials and is incredibly sturdy; ordinary swords and knives cannot harm it in the slightest.

"Bang!"

With a crisp gunshot, the scarecrow fell to the ground, a large hole pierced through its chest armor.

It felt as if I had been brutally torn apart by an invisible giant hand.

This time, Toman the Great could no longer remain calm.

He strode forward, carefully examining the pierced armor, his face grim, like the dark clouds before a storm.

"Since you have captured this weapon, why don't you copy it?"

He asked in an icy tone.

The old man smiled wryly:

"Your Majesty, these muskets and thunderclaps, once copied, are nothing but a pile of scrap metal!"

He waved his arms exaggeratedly, imitating a loser.

"Even if you copy the shape of a cat or tiger, without gunpowder, it's just a decoration! A thunderclap bomb without gunpowder is just a lump of iron; it's too light to even use it to hit someone's toes!"

The old man even stomped his foot as he spoke to emphasize his point.

He continued:

"And what about the musket? Don't even mention it, without gunpowder, it's just a fire poker!"

"What's truly formidable is the unpredictable gunpowder! Your Majesty, do you know that Lu Yan, all by himself, has mastered the secret of gunpowder!"

The old man extended a finger and shook it mysteriously.

"Only he could create this world-destroying thing! Although his soldiers don't seem many."

"But everyone was holding a musket, and there were so many thunderclaps that they were like stones on a mountain, you couldn't throw them all!"

The old man's voice began to tremble as he spoke.

"At first, our barbarian tribe could fight them to a standstill, exchanging blows and kicks, it was quite a lively fight! But later..."

The old man's face turned deathly pale, and terror flashed in his eyes.

"In the end, they were completely crushed! Your Majesty, can you imagine? One hundred thousand men being overwhelmed by ten thousand men—it's an utter disgrace!"

Touman waved his hand impatiently.

"Alright, alright, stop crying, I understand! Gunpowder is very important, gunpowder is very powerful! Can you say something useful?"

The old man quickly stopped crying and cautiously suggested:

"Your Majesty, why don't we send people to the Central Plains and try to get our hands on that gunpowder formula?"

Touman tossed the musket to his trusted confidant.

"We must replicate this musket. In addition, we should send people to the Central Plains to obtain the gunpowder formula at all costs!"

He paused, then added.

"Remember, you must be quick! I can't wait!"

He turned to look at the old man.

"I will send 100,000 elite troops to help you take Shannan County and obtain the gunpowder formula. If possible, also capture Lu Yan for me!"

A glint of greed flashed in Touman's eyes.

"Such talent should be put to my service!"

The old man was overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly kowtowed in thanks.

"Thank you, Your Majesty! But Your Majesty, isn't 100,000 men a bit too few? That Lu Yan is cunning and treacherous, what if..."

"Too few? Ten thousand elite troops are too few?"

Touman interrupted him impatiently.

"What kind of barbarians are you? And what kind of barbarians are my Hun cavalry? Can they even compare? My cavalrymen are all warriors who can take on ten men each! One hundred thousand is more than enough for them!"

Seeing that Touman was getting impatient, the old man didn't dare to say anything more.

"Yes, Your Majesty, you are absolutely right!"

Toman waved his hand.

"Alright, that's enough. I know what I'm doing. You may all go and rest, and await my orders!"

The old man bowed respectfully.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

After seeing off the barbarian envoy, Touman paced back and forth in his tent, his mind filled with a myriad of thoughts.

Lu Yan, an unknown nobody.

It's incredible that they were able to develop such a powerful force from a small county town.

This surprised and excited him.

If we can recruit this person to our side, why should we worry about the rise of the Xiongnu Empire?