Loser System and Berserker Me

Chapter 198: A Traitor Has Appeared Among Us

Khorasan had been gripped by terror and joy over early spring.

Those who felt joy were the ones who had been oppressed by the Persians and the Abbasids.

Shu Yichao’s invasion was as swift and batshit insane as ever.

His strategy was simple.

He would first have his terracotta warriors fly across the city walls before leaping off gigantified to clear the garrison troops’ defenses. Specters would emerge from defeated enemy troops, and they, together with the ghost horsemen, would quell any enemy resistance.

It was a straightforward tactic, but so far, no city had been able to survive it.

The peasants and slaves in the city felt vindicated when they saw those who had previously treated them no different from livestock were massacred in cold blood.

To their further delight, whenever Shu Yichao conquered a city, the ghost horsemen would distribute the land to them according to Tang laws.

The landowners in the region were being uprooted, and it would be a waste to leave these lands unoccupied, so they figured that they might as well distribute it to the locals.

The people of Khorasan were overjoyed. No one knew better than them what it meant to have a few hectares of land in this era.

My gosh! The world has finally taken pity on us after decades of suffering!

Black Lotus Temples started popping out like bamboo shoots after a rain.

Of course, these plots of land weren’t given for free.

The ghost horsemen had all been sly, old foxes back in their time.

Want land?

Sure. You just have to tie your Abbasid masters up, slit their wrists, and let them bleed to death.

The ghost horsemen even inscribed the names of those who did so on Shu Yichao’s Soul Summoning Tower, heralding them as ‘war merits’. Once the locals had stained their hands with Abbasid blood, they would have no choice but to throw their lot with the Tangs.

If they wanted to survive, their only option was to be Great Tang’s citizens.

Those who were gripped by terror were the areas under the Abbasid Caliphate’s rule.

There were four key cities in Khorasan.

Balkh, located near the southern shore of the Amu Darya River.

Herat, located at the northern border between the Persian Plateau and the Abbasid Caliphate.

Neyshabur, located at Persia’s northwest corner.

Last but not least, Merv.

The Abbasids were flabbergasted.

O’ true God, what is happening?!

Wasn’t it just months ago that General Tahir, under the caliph’s order and with the true God’s blessing, led his army north to deal with the Tang bandits?

How did General Tahir and his Khorasan army die in the blink of an eye?

Other than that, the Tangs had also destroyed the Abbasid Caliphate’s military in West Asia.

All in all, that added up to nearly 200,000 troops!

In contrast, the Abbasid Caliphate had only dispatched 20,000 soldiers in its showdown with the Eastern Romain Empire…

Before they could make sense of what was going on, Shu Yichao and his terracotta warriors were already knocking on their doors. They soon realized that the words ‘heavenly soldiers’ were literal.

Some Abbasids abandoned their cities and fled in fright. Some fought to the bitter end.

By the end of it, only Tang flags were left in Khorasan.

Li Siguo felt so blissful that he could faint. He hadn’t expected everything to be smooth sailing.

It had been a hundred years since the Arabs conquered Persia; he didn’t think that it would only take months for the Tang troops to take back the region. He could finally move to Herat, the gate into the Persian Plateau.

Once the Tangs conquer Sistan, we’ll finally be able to fly the flag of the Persian Empire. The only regret is that not many Persians acknowledge me as their king.

Most Persians saw Li Siguo as an underling who had only been riding on the Tangs’ coattails. They didn’t think that he had the qualifications to be king.

Thus, many Persians circumvented Li Siguo and approached Shu Yichao instead.

You, Li Siguo, can kneel to the Tangs, but so can we! And I dare say that our kneeling position is more standard than yours!

Lord Protectorate-General, don’t you think that we’re better candidates to be Persia’s king? Look, we have even brought tribute with us today!

Lions?

Yes, we have them too. Dozens of them!

…

On the Tibetan Plateau’s Holy City…

“What did you say? The Tangs appeared in Transoxania?!”

Tsenpo Ling could hardly believe her ears when she heard the news, especially since the Tangs’ attack on the Iron Gate Pass hadn’t stopped over the past six months!

It started with terracotta soldiers, followed by specters. The troop type might have changed, but the troop count remained as massive as before.

It would be an understatement to say that the battle at the Iron Gate Pass was tragic.

Tsenpo Ling had made a timely switch over to combat puppets, but the construction, maintenance, and shipping of the combat puppets still cost an astronomical sum of money, rations, ores, and herbs.

On top of that, she needed an army of mages to operate the combat puppets, and mages were expensive to raise and upkeep.

The Tibetan Empire was bleeding an insane amount of resources every day.

Nomads had their livestock taken away from them. Farmers had their crops pried away from their hands. Countless miners died in mine shafts.

Even so, the Tibetan Empire could only continue raising taxes and scraping for resources to finance the war.

This naturally led to a strong backlash from the populace.

Farmers and nomads were struggling so much that they raised their pitchforks of rebellion. Vassal states that harbored wild ambitions also started secretly sabotaging the Tibetan Empire.

To curb the uprising of the farmers, nomads, and vassal states, Tsenpo Ling had no choice but to raise the taxes further, but that, ironically, only further fanned the rebellion.

Tsenpo Ling thought that the Tibetan Empire might crumble by itself in a few years at this rate, even without the Tangs making any other move.

With their tight finances, she urgently needed to boost trade with other countries to loosen the economic pressures.

There was a road in the Tibetan Empire that was connected to Central and West Asia, a salt road that stretched alongside the Silk Road. Central and West Asia didn’t produce much salt in this era, so they were reliant on salt imported from the Tibetan Plateau.

Merchants from Tarim Basin, Transoxania, Khorasan, and other places would travel thousands of kilometers, across the Pamir Mountains’ treacherous terrains, to purchase food salt.

It was also through this salt road that the Tibetan Empire sold armor to the Abbasids and their herbs to distant Europe.

Even though Great and Little Patola were now occupied by the Tangs, the Tangs hardly stationed any soldiers in the region, presumably because the Tibetan Empire had previously cleared the region of all living beings.

Thus, Tsenpo Ling gathered an army of merchants, disguised them as foreigners, and sent them out to Central and West Asia via the salt road to trade. She didn’t expect the merchants to return with such nightmarish news.

“It’s true, Your Majesty!” the merchants cried. “The Tang army intercepted our convoy, killed nearly everyone, and plundered the deer musk, salt, and armor we were transporting! I’d have been torn to shreds by those specters if not for my quick feet!”

“Wu…”

Tsenpo Ling felt sharp pangs of pain in her temple, and it spread throughout her body.

That was a huge convoy carrying a lot of resources! She was banking on the convoy to return quickly after selling off their goods, or else their soldiers on the frontlines would have no food to eat.

But now…

“Why would the Tang army appear in Transoxania?” Tsenpo Ling rubbed her eyes.

Shouldn’t the Tang army’s main force be in Western Regions, anxiously trying to take down the Iron Gate Pass?

And I ordered Beiting and the Karluks not to engage them! How did the Tangs get enough troops to stretch their hands into Transoxania?

Could it be that they have more troops than I thought?

No, that can’t be.

My people in the Iron Gate Pass confirmed that most of the undead can only live for a few days. That isn’t enough time for them to get to Transoxania.

It’s more likely that there’s a traitor among us.

Tsenpo Ling clenched her jaws.

Dividing the Western Regions and Transoxania was the towering Tianshan. (T/N: Tianshan is a mountain.)

The Tang army, with their undead’s limited lifespan, shouldn’t have had enough time to cross over to Transoxania and invade it… unless a traitor showed them the path and offered tribute to them along the way.

“DAMN IT!!!”

A red light gleamed in Tsenpo Ling’s eyes. The merchant prostrating on the ground was instantaneously reduced to a pile of meat as if ripped apart by an invisible knife.

“SHIT!”

Tsenpo Ling pushed the snacks, tea, and antiques on the neighboring table onto the ground.

If the Tangs’ specters are already at Transoxania, it should be safe to assume that Suyab’s Karluks are already dead. The high shaman and the Holywolf Warrior might also turn a blind eye to the Tangs’ activities in Transoxania if they were offered generous terms.

This means that the Tibetan Empire’s western border is no longer safe.

“Those damned traitors! You better pray that I never find out who you are!” Tsenpo Ling growled.

There was nothing much she could do now other than to murmur a few curses.

…

“Achoo!” Weryomahners sneezed.

“Honored guest,” the lady sitting beside, wearing an opulent robe and a gleaming ruby on her forehead, suddenly called out, “are you feeling unwell?”

“I’m fine, Your Majesty Gopala. I am just unaccustomed to the environment here.” Weryomahners rubbed her nose. (T/N: Emperor Gopala is a man in history.)

Born on the Tibetan Plateau, it was normal for her to feel uncomfortable when traveling to a place that was at a much lower altitude. But she was still a mage after all, so it didn’t take her long to adapt.

“Let’s continue since you’re fine,” the lady replied with a gleam in her eyes.

She clapped her hands, and the banquet’s relaxing melody resumed.

The artisans danced gracefully to the melody while the servants presented delicacies to the guests. It was a merry atmosphere.

The Tibetan Empire coveted Sindhu, having invaded this land before. It would be a stretch to say that both sides were on friendly terms.

But the ruler of the Pala Empire, Gopala, was no fool. (T/N: The Pala Empire is located in the northern area of Sindhu/India)

She would rather have another powerful ally than a powerful enemy up north. That was why she had warmly hosted Weryomahners, who had fled here from Transoxania, for the past few days.

“Honored guest, the Tibetan Empire has always been a friend, and I would be happy to share my friend’s woes. I heard that the Tang bandits have been spreading destruction on your vast lands, bringing misery to your people. It’d be unseemly not to lend a helping hand to a friend in need. So, I decided to personally lead an army to aid your nation in eliminating the Tang bandits!”

“Ah?” Weryomahners was suddenly jolted awake.