"Something has happened, a major event has happened! Our Roman Empire's army has been defeated!!"
"Defeated? Wasn't this something we already knew? It's those people who took one of our cities! They won't be arrogant for long, our main army is about to attack them!!"
"I know that, but our main army has been defeated again!!"
"Defeated again??"
In this era, news did not spread that quickly.
Many people were still under the impression that a city of their Roman Empire had been taken by Lin Tian's army.
While such an event was surprising, it was only surprising.
After all, they understood that Lin Tian's army numbered over a hundred thousand.
With such a large force, attacking when their Roman Empire's soldiers were unprepared was quite normal.
But now, hearing that their Roman Empire had suffered another defeat, others in the Roman Empire were confused.
"Another defeat? How is that possible? Our Roman Empire's main army hasn't even set out yet!!"
"That's right! Our great emperor only just learned of this, how could we have been defeated? Where did this news come from?"
"Is your news accurate? Could it be a rumor??"
Many questioned the authenticity of this news.
Because in the eyes of many people in the Roman Empire, their Roman Empire was incredibly powerful.
It was enough to suffer one defeat.
One defeat, they could still find an excuse, but another defeat would be entirely different.
They absolutely did not want to accept another defeat.
Therefore, they urgently wanted to know if this was just a rumor.
However, their hopes were soon shattered.
"This is not a rumor, it's all true. Our Roman Empire's army has indeed suffered another defeat."
"And this time, our army suffered a crushing defeat!"
"Tens of thousands went out, and only a few thousand returned. Moreover, these few thousand were so terrified that they didn't dare to fight those people again!"
"Tens of thousands? Forty to fifty thousand of our soldiers were defeated?? How is that possible? Those are our Roman Empire's soldiers!"
"It's true, everything I'm saying is true. Everyone knows about this now, and I believe it will spread soon!"
"Hiss! It seems we've encountered a formidable enemy this time!"
Hearing this, the people of the Roman Empire immediately realized that Lin Tian and his forces were extraordinary.
If their strength were average, they would definitely not be a match for the Roman Empire's army.
Even with their large numbers, they couldn't have routed the Roman Empire's army like this, let alone terrified their soldiers to the point of losing their courage.
Thinking this, many began to take Lin Tian's army very seriously.
Among them was the Pope of the Crusades.
When he learned of this, he was even more anxious than the Roman Emperor.
At this time, the Roman Empire was jointly ruled by the Pope and the Emperor, and their religious sect's existence had also been recognized by the Roman Emperor.
Therefore, although the Pope would not occupy Roman territory, he would often assert his presence.
Now, upon hearing that their Roman Empire's army had been defeated again, and that some of their Crusader forces were involved, he was instantly enraged.
"Are you sure our Crusader forces were among them?"
"Your Holiness, I can confirm that our Crusader forces were among them. Furthermore, our soldiers were at the forefront of the charge and suffered the heaviest losses. To this day, not a single Crusader soldier has escaped back!"
"Not a single one?"
"Yes! Not one!"
Hearing this, the Pope of the Crusades could no longer restrain himself.
"How dare they! These people are truly audacious, daring to attack our Crusader forces! It seems the world has lost its reverence for us after so long!"
"Issue the command! Mobilize our Crusader forces immediately and attack those people directly, annihilate them!"
"Mobilize our Crusader forces? I wonder how many will be mobilized this time?"
"How many troops do we still have?"
"Excluding the hundred thousand sent to the East, we have two hundred thousand troops remaining!"
"Then mobilize my two hundred thousand troops! With the speed of lightning, annihilate these invaders and uphold the prestige of our Crusader forces."
At this critical juncture, the Pope had to vindicate himself with absolute power.
Only by demonstrating absolute strength would his enemies be afraid.
And only by showing absolute power could he stabilize his current position.
After all, his co-existence with the Roman Emperor was not due to any special qualities, but solely because of his formidable strength.
For in his hands lay the powerful Crusader army.
Thus, the Roman Emperor had acknowledged the existence of his religious sect and its legality.
Under such circumstances, if their sect showed any weakness or insufficient strength, the Roman Emperor would definitely abolish their sect.
At that point, their sect would have no foothold.
Therefore, they had to prove their might with absolute power.
While mobilizing two hundred thousand troops might seem like overkill, it was worth it to demonstrate their strength.
Especially since Lin Tian's army was an invading force.
Their arrival had not only severely defeated the Roman Empire's army but had also caused panic among some of the Roman populace.
In such a situation, if they stepped in to stabilize the situation and eliminate all these enemies, their credibility would greatly increase.
This would be a win-win situation for their sect and the Crusader forces.
Therefore, this matter was worth it for their sect and the Crusader forces.
Consequently, in just five days, they had assembled two hundred thousand troops and were heading straight for the city where Lin Tian's army was located.
Their actions also drew the attention of other Roman Empire armies.
Those armies, who had originally intended to charge towards the city where Lin Tian's army was, suddenly halted their advance upon seeing the movement of the Crusader army.
...