Douluo: The Adventures of King Skin

"Woe to you! This city of blood! It is full of deceit and violence, and there is no end to plunder! ... The sound of whips is loud, the wheels are rattling, the horses are kicking, the chariots are galloping, the horsemen are fighting for the lead, and the swords are shining, The spears flashed, many were slain, the corpses were in heaps, the dead were numerous, and people fell upon them. … Nineveh is destroyed, who will weep for you?”

——"The Book of Nahum"

The Scythians were a people from Central Asia.

1000 years ago, the grasslands that had flourished for nearly a thousand years simultaneously entered the Dark Ages. The old civilization of bronze warriors riding chariots collapsed, and their cities were submerged by seas of grass and swamps.

The vast area north of the Black Sea and east of the Polisthenes River became the land where the Cimmerians lived. They lived a half-farming and half-grazing life here for centuries.

Until about 400 years ago, the Scythians migrated here, bringing a new way of life.

They wore strong armor, held compound bows, were good at riding horses and driving livestock, and relied on a kind of caravan to travel long distances.

The Cimmerians were unable to fight back in front of these rushing warriors. They were driven all the way and retreated to the farming areas in the southwest to survive.

The Scythians established their own nation in the conquered lands.

Then they pursued the Cimmerians all the way across the Caucasus Mountains, launched a large-scale invasion of Van, Medes, Assyria, Babylon and other countries, and once ruled a large area of ​​​​Shannan. Their troops penetrated deep into Syria and Judea, and even reached the border of Egypt. And he fought against the pharaohs of the 26th Dynasty.

And the battle they participated in, together with the Babylonian and Mede forces, captured the capital of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. In addition to the joy of all the peoples conquered by Assyria, these brave and capable horse archers were also able to remain in the Jewish Bible. Lower figure.

This is also the first time in the entire process of human civilization that the galloping horse kings have brought the war culture on the grassland to the world of farming civilization...

**

On the wide water surface of the Polisthenes River, fifty slender shallow-bottomed speedboats all retracted their half-sails and slowly headed upstream. Their long and curved oars stirred back and forth in the river, constantly adjusting their progress. direction.

At the same time, on the east bank of the river, a huge parade was also advancing simultaneously, following the fleet all the way north.

The nobles of the prairie, men and women, had their chests and arms covered with gleaming gold and brass. It was unclear whether they were armor or ornaments. They wore exaggerated pointed hats and rode calmly on four, six, and eight horses. On the horse's magnificent chariot, they chatted with the guests from Greece.

The young warriors, armed with spears and bows, galloped back and forth on horseback, letting their beautiful silk cloaks and long tassels fly in the wind, and made various thrilling moves to show off their bravery in front of the princes and distinguished guests, and to show off their lord's power. face.

Most of them are ordinary herdsmen. The cattle and sheep they drive are all their property, and they carry all their belongings in the caravan. Their wives look at the refined salt distributed by the patriarch and the cloth from trade, and the children ride small Horses, wearing new clothes, shuttled happily among the queues.

While rowing, the crew members sang sea chants in unison, and the exciting and powerful melody spread far away. The shepherds could not understand it, but they also happily followed "Yo-ho-";

Then the people on the grassland also sang pastoral songs, and the long and deep songs were like the slowly flowing river, and the people on the boat also responded with chants...

It has been a long time since we saw such a peaceful scene on the grassland.

The Greeks sent an elite team to explore the north. They were going to open up the trade route on the swamp. And just upstream of the river and on the edge of the grassland, a trading city was about to be established, which would be jointly managed by the kings and ensure security. That will be their new home!

**

The Scythian people were no strangers to the Greeks, and it could even be said that they knew each other well.

They entered the Black Sea coast almost at the same time and jointly occupied the vacuum left by the Cimmerians.

One sells various handicrafts, coins, and wine, and the other provides slaves, wood, and various agricultural and animal husbandry products.The seafaring city-states and the prairie kings complemented each other and often even formed alliances to help in battles. They could almost be called close partners.

Even the Scythians often appeared in the Greek world as mercenaries, traders, slave traders, and even philosophers.

A Scythian prince named Anacharses traveled around many Greek city-states and became a guest of the "legislator" Solon. He was extremely wise and was familiar with the codes of Scythia and Athens, leaving countless anecdote.

During this period, with the deepening of exchanges between the two sides, city-states with Scythian ancestry appeared along the Black Sea coast, and tribes with Greek ancestry also appeared. The two sides imitated each other and established heavy infantry and cavalry units.

The time came 300 years ago, when Idan Tyrsus united all the Scythians and raised troops to fight against the Persian Achaemenid dynasty. He used the tactics of luring the enemy deep into the country to break the covetousness of Darius I. From then on, the great tribal alliance began to A true nomadic empire transformation.

The Greeks, on the other hand, were busy with internal and external wars.

The Kingdom of Scythia took the opportunity to bring the scattered colonial city-states of the Sea of ​​Azov into its sphere of influence, forcing them to pay tribute, and thus having its own handicraft industry. Yahai's trade monopoly.

All gone.

Due to the unstable system and the internal fighting among the Scythians, the Azov City-State Alliance took the opportunity to regain its independence and established the current Kingdom of Bosporus.

At the same time, the Celts, Dacians, and Odrisian Kingdom in the west were gradually advancing, and the Sarmatians in the east were also rising. The Scythians, who had been arrogant in this land for less than 400 years, were about to be destroyed. Following in the footsteps of the Cimmerians.

Another 50 years ago, King Attias of Scythia was killed in a battle with Philip II. The entire kingdom fell from its peak overnight. The nation was torn apart and gradually fell into decline.

**

At that time, the expedition fleet went north from the Aegean Sea, passed through the Hellespont Strait, crossed the entire Pontic Sea, and arrived at Olbia at the mouth of the Polisthenes River.

This is a Milesian colony, and if the fleet is to continue moving forward, it must wait here for the results of further negotiations.

This is because the situation on the grasslands today is quite bad. The tribes of Scythia have become a complete mess. They have been fighting against each other for many years in order to compete for control of winter and summer pastures and trade routes. As a result, they have become nomadic and nomadic. Without getting up, the pastures were ruined, no one could do business, and trade routes were cut off.

If Pythias wanted to follow the river deep into the interior, he would have to pass through the territories of dozens of large and small forces during the journey within the known range.

Fortunately, Maribus had arrived here half a month in advance. He traveled back and forth between various city-states, convincing large states such as the Kingdom of Bosporus and Chseniso to jointly send a "note" to the main forces on the grassland. :

Mediate all inter-tribal struggles on the banks of the Polisthenes River to restore trade routes and production order on the steppe.

The prairie princes were already interested in peace talks, but all they needed was an opportunity.

Of course, this opportunity is not an empty so-called "note", but a thousand bags of refined salt presented by Pythias' fleet!

The Scythians are not barbarians who only herd cattle and sheep. They also farm and have their own handicraft industry. They have come into contact with countless peoples from West Asia to Eastern Europe, have eaten and seen them, and have developed their own unique art and culture.

But a thousand bags of refined salt is still a meaningful gift.

What's more, these salts are so white and pure, like winter snow, like crushed pearls, and like clouds in the sky... They are simply treasures that are considered a waste when used to worship ancestors and gods!

Not to mention it was given for free!

Under the city of Olbia, a grand grassland rally was quickly organized.

Since the throne of Scythia was vacant, the nobles were bleeding, and the roads were cut off, various festivals were held each year. Such large-scale gatherings were rarely seen on the grasslands.

At the mouth of the Polisthenes River, there were countless Greek merchant ships on the water, and on the shore were herdsmen from various groups driving camels and herds, all of whom wanted to sell their long-backlogged goods.

However, the princes and nobles from countless tribes who originally belonged to the four major regions arrived late. The attendants set up an exquisite tent that reflected the majesty of the royal family. Enemies who were usually wary of each other put down their swords and guns to share wine with the Greek guests from afar. and salt.

They slaughtered hundreds of cattle, alpacas, and horses to sacrifice the god of thunder and lightning called Zeus to the Greeks and Paios to the Scythians. They swore an oath together under the witness of the gods to respect each other's spheres of influence, and to restrain the peace of their tribesmen. Attached...

In addition, we are participating in a grand event to open up the northern trade routes!

…………

…………

Peace is beginning to dawn on the grasslands, but the shadow of war is falling on the southern land.

Lysimachus led nearly [-] troops across the Hellespont, entered Asia from Europe, and invaded the Anatolian Peninsula.

The local conflicts and temptations ended here, and the Fourth Diadochi War officially broke out.