Under the dawn sky, the tribe, with its sporadic flames and black smoke, reeked of blood.

Li Ru stood amidst the ruins, expressionless as he looked at the nearly ten thousand prisoners gathered together.

He Lian, standing to the side, looked at Li Ru with a hesitant expression: "Sir, these prisoners are tall and strong, and are rare laborers. Wouldn't it be a waste to kill them like this?"

"Your Majesty, His Majesty the Emperor of the Han Dynasty once traveled through time and space and witnessed these blond-haired, blue-eyed descendants burning, killing, and looting our descendants of the East."

If we give them even the slightest chance to breathe, we will leave endless troubles for our descendants…

He Lian's expression shifted: "Oh? A prophecy from His Majesty the Emperor's dream...?"

Nowadays, most of the herdsmen of the Xianbei and Xiongnu have begun to believe in the Taiyi God, and Helian will naturally be affected to some extent.

The image of Taiyi that they worshipped was also drawn based on Liu Hong's outline.

Therefore, the emperor, who was called the son of Taiyi, was naturally also endowed with a trace of divinity.

And the emperor's warnings in his dreams were naturally not to be taken lightly.

Looking at the foreign prisoners in front of him, He Lian no longer hesitated and made a gesture to a Xianbei knight beside him.

The knight understood, immediately spurred his horse forward, and shouted, "Leave no prisoners alive!!"

Upon hearing the order, the ten thousand Xianbei cavalrymen immediately spurred their horses and charged towards the prisoners.

The massacre lasted for more than half an hour before it ended. None of the captured Slavs, regardless of age or gender, escaped; they all died at the hands of the Xianbei.

Such a bloody massacre terrified the Sarmatian vassal army following behind.

In the past, the Slavs had plundered them frequently and were regarded by them as a beast more terrifying than snow disasters.

Yet this formidable enemy was so easily wiped out by these yellow-skinned people from the East.

After daybreak, He Lian, covered in blood, found Li Ru once again.

“Sir, we have been traveling for four years, and our people are quite tired. I see that the surrounding grasslands are also very suitable for grazing.”

Moreover, five hundred li to the southwest lies Roman territory, which is perfect for grazing. Do you think we could occupy this land, rest and recuperate for a few years, and then slowly seize more territory?

Upon hearing this, Li Ru took out a map and began to examine it carefully.

According to intelligence sent by the Han Dynasty, at least three million barbarians live in the central and western parts of this vast grassland.

It was indeed quite difficult for the combined Xianbei and Xiongnu forces to occupy the entire grassland.

The ideal approach now would be to wipe out the Eastern Slavs, then occupy the eastern steppes, and use that as a base to recuperate and rebuild.

After a moment's thought, Li Ru finally nodded: "This place is indeed suitable as a base. Let's go with Your Majesty's wishes!"

"Alright, I'll go and tell the people!"

Upon seeing Li Ru's agreement, He Lian's face showed a hint of excitement, and he then spurred his horse toward the herdsmen who were moving slowly behind him.

When they learned that they could finally stop, the herders from both sides danced with joy.

In the following period, 60,000 Xianbei and Xiongnu cavalry, along with 20,000 Sarmatians' auxiliary troops, split into two groups and launched a large-scale, all-out attack on the Slavs in the eastern steppe.

Even the Slavs, renowned for their bravery and skill in battle, were powerless against the Xianbei and Xiongnu cavalry, who were also equipped with horseshoes, stirrups, and saddles.

During the attack, the soldiers of both units carried out Li Ru's extermination order to the end. Except for a few beautiful young women, all the Slavs who were attacked were killed.

Whenever a tribe was conquered, the herders from the two tribes behind would drive their cattle and sheep to receive everything left behind by the Slavs.

After three months of continuous attacks, nearly 300,000 Slavs who occupied the eastern steppe suffered direct losses of nearly 270,000. Only 10,000 young and beautiful women were spared, while the rest were mixed with the soil and became nutrients for the pasture.

Of the 30,000 surviving Slavs, some fled to the central steppes, while others fled towards Roman territory.

Li Ru also dispatched two teams of scouts to pursue the fleeing Slavs and, incidentally, to familiarize themselves with the roads in order to facilitate future military operations.

The Xianbei and Xiongnu people who usurped the throne were affectionately referred to as the "Yellow Peril" by these surviving Slavs.

In the northern part of the Slavic province, a group of soldiers patrolled the city walls, and as they walked, they kept turning their heads to look north.

Last winter, 10,000 Slavic cavalrymen crossed the defenses and invaded the Slavic province, causing numerous casualties and losses, and making life miserable for the people in the province.

Therefore, the Slavic governor dispatched a legion of soldiers to patrol the border.

He didn't expect these soldiers to be able to stop the Slavic attack; all he wanted was to buy some time for the people inside the country to escape.

Upon arriving at the patrol post, the captain, glancing at the northern horizon, smiled and said, "Looks like nothing's happening today, let's head back!"

With that, the captain led his men back along the same route.

Just as the group was about to descend the wall, a soldier habitually glanced north.

At just one glance, the soldier froze, a look of panic crossing his face.

"Captain... Captain, there's... there's someone!"

"Um?"

Upon hearing his soldiers' words, the captain also turned his head and looked north.

On the distant horizon, a group of black dots were rapidly approaching the border.

"Enemy attack! Quickly, set fire!!"

The captain yelled and hurriedly led his men toward the patrol point.

Soon, the patrol team of soldiers rushed to a pile of cow dung at their patrol point.

A soldier then took a bucket of water and poured it onto the cow dung until it was half-wet.

Just as the captain picked up a torch, preparing to set the cow dung ablaze, a soldier suddenly shouted, "Captain, something's wrong!"

The captain paused, then turned his head to look.

The "attacking" force was in a chaotic formation, consisting not only of able-bodied men but also many women and children, and numbered no more than five thousand.

Moreover, based on experience, this rapidly moving team doesn't seem to be charging forward, but rather fleeing for their lives.

This place is called the Slavic Province not only because it is close to the Slavic settlements, but also mainly because there are many Slavs in the area.

Most of the Slavs in these areas could not endure life on the steppe and sought refuge in the Roman Empire.

Therefore, in the captain's view, these Slavs in front of him must also be refugees.

I just don't know what caused them to be in such a panic?