Zhou Yan saw that the Dark Dynasty was complying with his wishes and naturally wouldn't make things difficult for them anymore.
Zhou Yan then issued an ultimatum to the other five dynasties.
These five dynasties were not from the Divine Demonic Continent, but from other worlds. One of them was called the Underworld Dynasty, located in a place called the Underworld Realm. This was the imperial city that had attacked Zhou Yan before.
Furthermore, the Underworld Realm was extremely powerful because the entire Underworld Realm had only one nation: the Underworld Dynasty.
When the Underworld Dynasty received Zhou Yan's territorial ultimatum, they were utterly dismissive.
They even arrogantly taunted Zhou Yan, threatening to ensure he would never return.
The Underworld Dynasty even looked down on the Dark Dynasty, despising them for showing weakness to a mere territory and calling them cowards.
In short, the people of the Underworld Dynasty were very smug and extremely confident in their own strength.
They indeed had the right to be arrogant. After all, their entire dynasty controlled a realm, and the entire planet belonged to their dynasty. Were they afraid?
Zhou Yan was just a territory. Would they be afraid of Zhou Yan's mere territory?
The powers on the entire planet were under the control of the Underworld Dynasty. They had no fear of Zhou Yan and even mobilized countless troops, intending to eliminate him.
Seeing that the Underworld Dynasty was so fearless of death, Zhou Yan decided to grant their wish and make them his next target.
Zhou Yan had already given the Underworld Dynasty a chance. Since they refused to take it, they had only themselves to blame.
However, the other four dynasties made the same choice as the Dark Dynasty; they all chose to negotiate.
These four dynasties were in four different worlds. Due to the vast distances, their negotiations were conducted via long-distance calls.
The strength of these four dynasties was comparable to that of the Dark Dynasty and the Ancient Dynasty. In fact, two of them were even weaker than the other two.
Facing Zhou Yan's demands, they naturally tried their best to negotiate.
Zhou Yan spent his days negotiating with them. In any case, once the Ancient Dynasty was eliminated, if they still refused to agree to his terms, Zhou Yan would threaten them by making them his next target.
Under Zhou Yan's threats, two dynasties first agreed to Zhou Yan's demands and apologized to the entire Lord Continent. They also agreed to accept the compensation demands Zhou Yan had set.
When the Dark Dynasty heard that other dynasties were also showing weakness to Zhou Yan, they rejoiced.
At least they weren't alone; they had comrades in misfortune.
Because of this, the mood of everyone in the Dark Dynasty improved slightly.
However, they still harbored resentment towards Zhou Yan. Due to him, the taxes of the entire Dark Dynasty had increased significantly, and various materials were being collected from all the lords of the Dark Dynasty.
Moreover, the Dark Dynasty was doing all of this under the guise of saving their nation.
The Dark Dynasty was relatively united, with many people voluntarily contributing precious materials to the dynasty.
It was precisely because of this that the Dark Dynasty's pressure wasn't so immense. With the help of these patriotic individuals, they had alleviated a great burden.
Unfortunately, all these things had to be compensated to Zhou Yan.
As Zhou Yan's progress in eliminating the Ancient Dynasty accelerated, the remaining two dynasties finally agreed to Zhou Yan's terms.
Zhou Yan soon received the first batch of compensation materials from the four dynasties.
These items were abundant, and with these resources, Zhou Yan's territory's buildings became even more prosperous and flourishing.
Out of the five dynasties, four chose to compromise, while only the Underworld Dynasty chose to go to war with Zhou Yan.
Zhou Yan also stated that after dealing with the Ancient Dynasty, the Underworld Dynasty would be next.
Zhou Yan specifically investigated matters concerning the Underworld Dynasty and discovered that although this dynasty appeared to rule an entire planet, it was currently facing resistance from many of its lower-class citizens.
This was because the dynasty was too corrupt and never considered the interests of its lower strata. The dynasty was already at its end, and rebellion was bound to erupt sooner or later, even without Zhou Yan's intervention.
Zhou Yan planned to seize the opportunity to harvest resources when an uprising broke out in the Underworld Realm.
As time passed, Zhou Yan's territory had almost completed its offensive against the Ancient Dynasty.
Zhou Yan confiscated all the wealth of the Ancient Dynasty and returned to the Canglan Continent to recuperate.
After his recuperation, it would be time to attack the Underworld Dynasty.
Everyone on the Lord Continent was awaiting the moment Zhou Yan attacked the Underworld Dynasty.
And the Underworld Dynasty had also long since prepared to await Zhou Yan's arrival.
However, within the entire Underworld Realm, countless people were also waiting for Zhou Yan's arrival. They were the lower-class citizens of the Underworld Dynasty, and they earnestly hoped Zhou Yan would come sooner to overthrow the corrupt imperial city.
The lower strata of the entire Underworld Dynasty were waiting for the moment of eruption. As soon as Zhou Yan attacked, they would lend their support.
This was something that perhaps even Zhou Yan himself did not know.
Meanwhile, in the Ancient Dynasty's territory, after Zhou Yan departed the Divine Demonic Continent, the Ancient Dynasty's former lands became unclaimed territory.
The surrounding nations had long been waiting for this moment.
They dispatched their armies one after another to occupy the former territories of the Ancient Dynasty.
However, after these nations finished their occupations, conflicts erupted among them. This was because certain areas of the Ancient Dynasty possessed extremely rich resources. Although Zhou Yan had taken some, there was still a great deal that had not been excavated.
These resource-rich areas became hotly contested territories among these dynasties.
Thus, a war for territorial disputes began. The original cause of this incident was Zhou Yan. If not for him, the Ancient Dynasty would not have been destroyed, and they would not have been involved.
However, Zhou Yan destroyed the Ancient Dynasty but did not claim the territory, leaving it as it was. These dynasties would not let such a huge prize slip through their fingers.
Over a dozen nations once again launched a war in the former lands of the Ancient Dynasty. As the fighting intensified, it even triggered a massive war between two super-empires.
Upon witnessing everything that had transpired in the Ancient Dynasty's territory, the Dark Dynasty felt fortunate for having made a very wise decision.
At least their nation remained intact, and their country was not engulfed in war.
Although the surrounding nations harbored covetous intentions, they dared not launch an invasion as long as the Dark Dynasty was not destroyed.
Furthermore, due to their agreement with Zhou Yan, they were even more hesitant to act.
The Dark Dynasty had to supply Zhou Yan with a batch of materials every month. If they were to initiate a war, preventing the Dark Dynasty from fulfilling its obligations, and the Dark Dynasty were to blame the aggressor nations, they would surely face repercussions.
No one wished to provoke someone like Zhou Yan. Therefore, these nations not only refrained from starting wars but also actively offered support and aid to the Dark Dynasty, hoping they would overcome their difficulties soon.