The destruction of Green Valley Fortress was like a super storm sweeping across the wasteland, and the shockwaves it generated rapidly engulfed hundreds of kilometers of land at an unimaginable speed.
The news was not deliberately spread by Lin Feng's army, but by the terrified survivors who had managed to escape from the ruins. They spread the word in the most frightened, incoherent, yet truthful language.
In the tavern of Ironstone Town, a man with a missing arm, clutching a wine bottle, wept bitterly and roared at everyone: "A demon god... a black-clad demon god has descended! With just a wave of his hand, he stopped all the arrows in the air! Then, all the arrows flew back and killed our own people!"
At the wanderers' camp on the edge of the swamp, a woman with a deathly pale face, holding a child, muttered to herself with vacant eyes: "The city wall... the fifteen-meter-high city wall... he crushed it like clay... the sky has fallen... the sky really has fallen..."
At first, people in other settlements thought it was the ravings of the defeated.
But as more and more refugees from different directions told almost identical, incredibly detailed, horrific stories, panic began to spread like a plague in the hearts of every survivor.
The second place Lin Feng "named" was a medium-sized settlement called "Ironstone Town".
When Lin Feng's army arrived at the city gates, not a single miracle occurred.
Qin Lan simply sent someone to throw a giant crossbow bolt, which had been picked up from the ruins of Green Valley Fortress, crushed and twisted into a twisted shape by telekinesis, in front of the gate of Ironstone Town.
The leader of Ironstone Town, a burly man known for his bravery, had all the color drain from his face the moment he saw the crossbow bolt.
He had no doubt about the veracity of the Green Valley Fort legend. No mortal could possibly twist solid steel into such a shape.
Half an hour later, the city gates were opened wide, and the entire town of over 1,800 people, led by their leader, collectively left the city and knelt down to surrender.
The dominoes began to fall with overwhelming force, collapsing with a devastating roar.
The third, the fourth, the fifth...
Lin Feng's name became the most terrifying taboo in this land, and also the most supreme code name.
No one dared to mention "demon god" or "devil" anymore; they began to use a more fitting and awe-inspiring term to describe him—the King of Divine Punishment.
His will is divine retribution.
Wherever his gaze fell, there lay the place where divine punishment would descend.
The next two weeks became an absurd yet efficient, one-sided journey of "conquest".
Lin Feng was too lazy to even leave his luxurious palace.
He only needs to sit in front of the sand table in Chengtian Hall every day and gently touch a certain spot on the sand table with his finger.
Qin Lan's "Divine Punishment Legion" will then set off.
Most of the time, before the main army even arrives, the settlement whose name has been called has already sent its most humble messenger, carrying the entire population roster and a list of supplies, on a long journey to the majestic palace of the sanctuary, where they prostrate themselves and kneel in surrender.
They gave up everything—women, wealth, weapons, freedom—just to pray that the "King of Divine Punishment" would retract his destructive rage.
The city gates of the shelter were bustling with activity like never before.
One after another, groups of survivors, their faces filled with terror and bewilderment, arrived as if on a pilgrimage, either escorted or migrating voluntarily. Their faces reflected a mixture of uncertainty about the future and extreme fear of the unfamiliar king.
The population of the shelters was growing at an explosive rate.
Five thousand... seven thousand... nine thousand...
When the scouts brought back the last three hundred trembling survivors from a small fishing and hunting tribe in the far east, the total population of the shelter officially broke through the mark of 12,000 people, as the head steward Liu An trembled as he reported!
The entire shelter was completely transformed into a vibrant yet strictly orderly giant city.
The thousands of newly recruited workers were efficiently assigned to various positions by Su Wanqing and the ministers of each department.
Mines, farmlands, factories, urban construction... everywhere is a scene of bustling construction activity.
The city's territory has been expanded outward time and time again.
However, beneath this scene of extreme prosperity, at the very pinnacle of power, Lin Feng's heart was once again shrouded in that familiar, even more profound, sense of emptiness.
That's too easy.
Everything was too simple.
Conquest should be a symphony of bloodshed and challenges, passion and strategy.
But for him, it became a boring, single-player game that only required moving his fingers.
He stood at the highest point of Chengtian Hall. Outside the huge French windows lay his kingdom, with a population of over ten thousand, and his subjects who were busy yet reverent under his divine power.
He felt no sense of accomplishment whatsoever.
It's like a max-level player, dressed in top-tier gear, returning to the starting village, killing everyone with a single strike.
After the brief moment of pleasure, all that remains is endless emptiness and utter boredom.
Just then, a light footstep sounded. Su Wanqing walked in. Her demeanor was now more calm and capable, and the look in her eyes as she looked at Lin Feng held a hint of tenderness and affection that no one else noticed.
But at this moment, her face carried a hint of solemnity.
“Leader.” She bowed, her voice carrying an unusual undertone. “Something has happened. All three of our scout teams that were sent to explore further east have lost contact at the same time.”
Lin Feng finally turned around slowly, and a barely perceptible ripple finally flashed in his eyes, which were usually calm and still.
"Lost contact?" he repeated. The shelter's scouts were well-equipped and experienced; it was no coincidence that three squads lost contact simultaneously.
“Yes.” Su Wanqing handed over a report with only a few words transmitted through a special encrypted channel: “This is the last and only valid message transmitted by one of the teams before the signal was completely cut off.”
Lin Feng took the report, which contained only one line of text, the handwriting of which appeared hasty and messy.
"Encountering an unknown barrier... it's a wall... an endless wall... made of steel."
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