Mythical Three Kingdoms

This is also the root problem of the Kushan’s conflicts in Central Asia and South Asia. It’s no longer just a simple clash of forces, but a deeper conflict between cultures. The sheer number of powerful civilizations involved is astonishing.

Starting from the Central Asian culture of the Kushan, avoiding complexity, we only discuss the mainstream civilizations that can be represented.

The first is naturally the Western Regions culture after the infiltration by Han Civilization, and a natural religious culture formed by the Great Yuezhi as the main body, along with Scythians, Persians, and others, based on animism.

There’s no need to say much about the main body of this culture. After all, the Han Empire was overwhelmingly powerful in its day, influencing all surrounding countries and ethnic groups. The core of this influence was not any natural religion but rather the idea of unity.

It can be said that any neighboring country that stayed close to the Han Dynasty for long enough would be affected by this cultural ideology, and the predecessor of the Kushan, the Great Yuezhi, was inevitably influenced.

The strength of this ideology needs no further elaboration. Han Civilization exemplifies this thinking, spreading over millennia without interruption, with its ideology, civilization, and cultural influence remaining immensely strong.

The second is the Bactrian-Greek civilization brought by Alexander the Great. Whether it’s the conqueror’s status or its cultural origin, it proves the might of this culture. The ancient Greek conqueror king, one of the sources of European civilization, similarly has its influence on later civilizations.

The third is a relatively weaker classical religion, identified as Zoroastrianism, Fire Worship, and quasi-monotheism, along with the Aryan people’s original religion which created the caste system and the myths of Persia and India. However, during this period, it’s still an extremely powerful religious culture.

Alright, this is just the Central Asian portion, each has significant status. The Kushan inherited the foundations left by these people, thus naturally carrying the legacy of their cultures.

Next is South Asia, simply dominated by two main forces: the Hindu caste system created by the Aryan people, and the Buddhist culture formed organically by the Shramana.

These two don’t need much further explanation, as they are still integral parts of world religious culture today, their vitality resiliently tied to the breadth of human civilization.

This creates the confrontation between Kushan’s Central Asia and South Asia. To be blunt, without the more complete Hindu caste system created by the Aryans in South Asia, and the Buddhist culture formed by the Shramana, the internally conflicted forces of Central Asia might have exploded even earlier.

Of course, without the suppression of the three strong cultures in Central Asia, Buddhism would have clashed fiercely with Hinduism long ago to demonstrate its own strength.

In summary, Kushan can be seen as a prime example of a pitfall. This situation arises because, for some reason, the group in Central Asia considers themselves as the true founders of the Kushan Empire, viewing South Asia merely as a territory annexed through conquest. Now, the insolent people of South Asia audaciously regard themselves as superior to the heroes of Central Asia—intolerable!

Needless to say, habitual conflicts broke out between the two sides. Before Vasu Deva I could control the situation, it had already become such a spectacle, with over eighty thousand troops with Dual Talent Legion staring across the river, as a major war threatened to erupt!

Given the longstanding hostile attitude between the north and south parts of Kushan, it would be unusual not to have several skirmishes per year. Even Vasu Deva I considered this to be completely normal.

Hence, when King Sai’s Warrior Legion provoked the Peacock Crossbow Legion training in the Indus River Basin and got beaten by the Peacock Crossbow Legion, Vasu Deva I, who was not far from the site at Peshawar, merely indicated Zhuu Helai to send some people to mediate.

After all, Central Asian generals provocatively clashing with South Asian generals, and South Asian legion attacking Central Asian legion, such incidents happened frequently in Kushan. As the Kushan Emperor, he was already accustomed to these daily occurrences, even if this time two Dual Talent Legions clashed. Yes, such events are quite common.

In Kushan, it was practically an everyday occurrence. Over a century, the conflicts between South Asia and Central Asia were so numerous that both sides had lost seven or eight elite legions, and when considering Dual Talent Super Elite, well, except the Elephant Soldiers Legion of South Asia, other legions had suffered substantial damage.

Compared to this time when only three or four hundred of King Sai’s Warriors were killed, Vasu Deva I deeply felt fortunate. Previously, during the confrontation between Hupisega and Yinneisega, Kushan’s elite troops were almost half crippled, and it took the nation nearly ten years to recover.

Thus, for the battle-hardened Kushan Emperor, losing a few hundred men during a skirmish between Central Asia and South Asia’s Dual Talent Legions was nothing more than trivial…

After all, Kushan’s daily life consists of the standoff between Central Asia and South Asia, the clashes among various civilizations, and the occasional unexplained annihilation of a certain legion; so losing only a few hundred Dual Talent Super Elite Soldiers this time seemed quite restrained to Vasu Deva I.

This is also why Vasu Deva I didn’t pay much attention initially; he merely instructed his subordinates to send a mediating team to handle it, as the issue didn’t seem serious.

However, what followed left the Kushan people dazzled. Before the Kushan Royal Family’s mediation team even arrived, King Sai’s Warrior had already pulled several legions over in Central Asia for assistance, while the Peacock Crossbow Legion across the river had brought their troops over too.

Then, the armies on both banks of the Indus River rapidly expanded like snowballs rolling downhill; both sides rallied allies, legion leaders sought other legion leaders, and soon nearly eighty thousand Dual Talents assembled on both riverbanks, ultimately resulting in the emergence of the Kushan Military Spirit Legion.

It was inevitable; originating from South Asia, the Imperial Family’s Enforcement Scepter had some filial connections with those legion leaders from South Asia.

The current Central Asian forces of Kushan were exceedingly tough; nearly fifty thousand from five major Dual Talent legions were positioned on the north bank of the Indus River. Despite being somewhat affluent, South Asian forces looked down on Central Asian Kushans. Nonetheless, if one were to speak of history, the Great Yuezhi had conquered from north to south.

In other words, back then, those Central Asian Kushans conquered the current South Asia, so if one were to speak of strength, the land-based power of Central Asian Kushans was far superior to South Asian Kushans.

Simply put, if the Imperial Scepter didn’t intervene, given Kushan’s previous friction scale, those Central Asian Kushans seizing the opportunity could utterly cripple the Kushans from South Asia.

There were more than thirty thousand Dual Talent legions; if those Central Asian lunatics went berserk, and launched a river-crossing attack directly, South Asia couldn’t possibly retreat without sacrificing one or two thousand Dual Talent Super Elite soldiers.

This is the main reason the Kushan Military Spirit Legion had to intervene to sway the situation; to prevent an outbreak of conflict, maintaining the current balance was necessary. However, even with a Military Spirit Legion added in South Asia, those legion leaders in Central Asia were still restless, even eager to act.

Meanwhile, because representing the Royal Family, the Military Spirit Legion sided with South Asia, Central Asian Kushans felt chilled; they were the nobility of the Kushan Empire, throughout the north-to-south wars, every Central Asian Kushan household shed blood. Yet now, standing against them was the Military Spirit Legion dubbed the Imperial Scepter, leaving Central Asian nobles disheartened.

Central Asian nobility weren’t bound by the caste system; their civilization stemmed from Asia Minor represented by Alexander and the Central Plains represented by the Han Dynasty.

As the earliest nobles of Kushan, they were the true founders of Kushan; although plagued by various issues, they represented Kushan’s past. They conquered South Asia, established the Kushan Empire, but now the empire’s core powers stand against them, it’s hard to tell if they are the empire’s greatest enemies or if the opposing side are traitors of Kushan.

However, that chill was real; witnessing the empire they built drawing blades against them, the Central Asian legion leaders felt disheartened, with some nearly ordering a river-crossing attack upon seeing the Military Spirit Legion standing opposite.

The capital city of the Kushan Empire was established in Peshawar, the geographical division between Central Asia and South Asia, symbolizing the Imperial Family’s neutrality towards both Central Asia and South Asia, able to arbitrate or connect both sides.

Though the elder nobles of Central Asia felt uneasy, they stayed silent, but today they suddenly realized, unknowingly, they’ve been betrayed by the empire they built, so furious legion leaders wanted to lead an assault across the Indus River and obliterate both the opposing army and the Military Spirit Legion altogether.

This is why the Central Asian legion leaders didn’t retreat despite the arrival of Kushan’s Military Spirit Legion; instead, their numbers have grown, for to these elder Central Asian nobles, if the nation has abandoned them, they must reshape it again like a hundred years ago, conquering it once more from north to south!

The Military Spirit Legion is nothing; in such pure Dual Talent legion wars, if they can fight fivefold, let them try; today the message is clear, if you block our advance, we’ll obliterate you along the way!

For over a hundred years, when the Imperial Scepter stood against the Central Asian legion leaders, Central Asian Kushans suddenly realized; the friction within Central Asia and the confrontation against the opposing Imperial Scepter seemed extinguished by a cold bucket of water.

From the Great Yuezhi marching out of the Western Regions, conquering the Bactrian Kingdom in Ancient Greece, the hatred lingering in Central Asia for hundreds of years washing down with this icy water, Central Asians finally awakened; compared to the South Asia they conquered, they themselves were outsiders!

Central Asians calmed down, ceased the centuries-old internal friction, recognizing that despite internal disputes, South Asia was the greatest enemy of Central Asian forces. With the Imperial Scepter’s emergence, Central Asians united as they once had.