Silverheart Valley.
The Burning Sun Shuttle descended from the air and landed in the canyon. Shi Kaihuang, Li Chongshan, Chu Yingwan, and the others stepped out of the shuttle.
A soldier bowed to Li Chongshan and the others and said, “Deputy Garrison Chief is still doing his research and told us not to disturb him unless it was a serious crisis.”
“Then we’ll just wait for a bit.” Li Chongshan wasn’t particularly disturbed by this. Given how many contributions Su Chen had made at this point, no one had any issues with him making them wait for a bit.
They sat beneath an old tree in the valley, drinking tea and playing a few games of chess with each other before Su Chen finally appeared, along with the white paper doll. Now that Iron Cliff was no longer with him, the white paper doll had become Su Chen’s new assistant.
“How did you guys find time to come over today? And with my Raging Sun Shuttle to boot?” Su Chen asked with some curiosity.
“Southern Advance Castle has fallen,” Chu Yingwan said. “Sachar Inferno has died.”
“Sachar Inferno?” Su Chen was stunned. “The Inferno Tribe’s old God of War?”
“That’s right,” Shi Kaihuang said as he nodded firmly.
“He’s an important figure,” Su Chen said as he sucked in a mouthful of cold air. “How did he die?”
“He died holding the line. Though he died, a majority of the hundred thousand Ravager soldiers inside were able to survive because of him. The Ferals had paid a tremendous price, but in the end they were only able to kill 24,000 Ravager soldiers. The main force of the Inferno Tribe had been preserved, and they had been able to safely retreat to the north of Sandsift Mountain,” Li Chongshan said.
Su Chen muttered, “Exchanging the life of an old man who is about to die to preserve the main Ravager force stationed at Southern Advance City? That’s a pretty good exchange. What a pity……”
No one knew what he felt was a pity.
Shi Kaihuang said, “I have another piece of news. The Gravel Lizard Tribe’s Head Chieftain died, and Danba has officially taken over as Head Chieftain.”
“So he’s begun to make moves as well,” Su Chen chuckled.
“You knew he would do this?” Chu Yingwan asked.
Su Chen replied, “All I know is that if he was having trouble even taking this step, then he has no right to discuss the conditions of our exchange.”
Li Chongshan shook his head. “He cannot satisfy the conditions you put forth on him.”
Neither the Origin Bone nor the totems were items that Danba could afford to hand over.
Su Chen calmly said, “I was never planning on getting him to fulfill those conditions anyways. I just want him to do his best to satisfy them.”
“As expected,” Chu Yingwan sighed. “You want to incite a civil war amongst the Ravagers.”
Yes, this was what Su Chen was after.
Only the person who controlled the Iron and Blood Country had the authority to sell the country’s most important items.
As such, when Su Chen made a proposal like that, he was secretly informing Danba what he was after.
Internal conflicts, fragmentation, pitting Ravager against Ravager – that’s what Su Chen was after.
The Origin Bone wasn’t important, and neither were the totems. Su Chen’s goal had always been to strategically research how to increase the combat strength of the human race as a whole, not some treasure that could only increase the strength of the individual. With such a goal, neither the Origin Bone nor the totems could compete with a cultivation technique that would bolster the strength of a race as a whole.
If Danba wanted it, he would need to fragment the country.
Su Chen didn’t even need him to sell anything. As long as he tried to pick a fight with his current ruler, that was good enough.
Li Chongshan and the others had some guesses about this, and now, they had managed to verify it straight from Su Chen himself.
“How do you know he’ll do this?” Li Chongshan asked.
“Because he has ambitions and a patriotic spirit. Most importantly, he doesn’t really even have a choice,” Su Chen replied.
The bait Su Chen had offered was too good for Danba to even consider passing up. Any individual with the will to lead the Ravagers in the future would automatically want to bear the responsibility for the future of the Ravagers when faced with what Su Chen had proposed. Compared with the fate of the Ravagers, the Inferno Tribe and a short period of internal conflict were both nothing.
Whether for his countrymen or for himself, Danba had no reason to refuse, so he could only accept.
“The question is, can he win?” Shi Kaihuang asked.
“Not right now. But I have given him the opportunity……”
Given the Gravel Lizard Tribe’s strength and Danba’s power, it would normally have been impossible for them to challenge the Inferno Tribe for the throne.
However, the Beast Wave had given him an opportunity.
By relying on the devastation caused by the Beast Wave, Danba’s responding to the royal summons meant that he could utilize the imperial decree to bolster his own influence.
The first thing he needed to do was not to recklessly challenge an opponent but to increase his own strength.
Once his power was adequate, he could afford to start making trouble for the Inferno Tribe.
“But even so, the Inferno Tribe will likely detect his scheme. They might exterminate him before he can deepen his roots,” Li Chongshan said.
“That’s possible, but don’t forget that I’m here as well,” Su Chen chuckled.
Everyone knew that he was referring to the technique that would allow the RAvagers to control Origin Energy.
If Su Chen were to hand over this technique to Danba, then the Gravel Lizard Tribe’s might would likely suddenly eclipse that of the Inferno Tribe.
“How is the research going?” Li Chongshan asked.
“Everything is going according to plan. I should be able to succeed in at most ten days.”
“What point have you reached?” Shi Kaihuang asked.
Su Chen replied, “They can now successfully reach the Qi Drawing Realm.”
Even though it didn’t sound like much, that was a staggering improvement for the Ravagers.
This kind of cultivation technique was equivalent to allowing every Ravager to undergo baptism at least once.
Shi Kaihuang couldn’t help but feel apprehensive. “I hope you’re not playing with fire.”
Su Chen replied, “Quite the opposite. This is preserving the equilibrium. If the human race grows too powerful and dominant, we might not be needing to deal with the Ravagers but with other human warriors.”
Li Chongshan, Shi Kaihuang, and the others were simultaneously taken aback.
They hadn’t thought the matter through as clearly as Su Chen had, who had managed to identify the glaring issue immediately.
After a long time, Shi Kaihuang sighed. “Forget about it. It’s your mission, so you make the decisions. I won’t ask about it anymore.”
Li Chongshan said, “There’s one more thing. Danba’s Gravel Lizard Tribe has gone to the north, so there probably won’t be many soldiers guarding the Heavenly River Ancient Road. In other words……”
“The path back home is now open,” Su Chen finished.
The other reason for getting Danba to start an internal conflict was so that a path back home would be opened up.
When Danba was placing all of his focus on the internal conflict, no one would be left to block the Heavenly Might Battalion from going home.
This was the main reason why Li Chongshan and the others had come looking for Su Chen.
They had been out and about for a long time. Without a doubt, the Heavenly Might Battalion was incredibly homesick.
“Yes, the path home is open now. Without the Gravel Lizard Tribe’s aid, the few small tribes in our way will not be able to stop us,” Chu Yingwan chuckled. “This is all possible because of what you have done for us. We came today to tell you that we can prepare to leave now.”
“We can prepare to leave now……” Su Chen remained in thought for some time.
Then, he suddenly smiled. “You guys can leave for now. I will remain here for a bit longer.”
“You’re going to remain?” Chu Yingwan asked with some surprise. “If it’s because of the transaction with Danba, you can do that even if you go back. I promise that no one will stop you……”
“No.” Su Chen shook his head. “That’s not why.”
“Then what are you staying here for?” everyone asked simultaneously.
Su Chen stood and took a few paces.
Then, he stopped and looked up at the sky.
After a long time, he said, “I am different from you all. The Heavenly Might Battalion is constantly being pursued by the Ravagers, so all you have experienced in the Ravager territory is slaughter and escape. You don’t dare to stay in the same place for a long time, and you cannot sleep peacefully at night. Even if you do want to go somewhere else, you need to spend time to deliberate over where to go. One simple mistake could damn you all to a terrible fate. You also don’t have much time to rest during the day, so your physical strength has been exhausted to its limits. Because food is limited, your physical bodies are chronically malnourished, and many soldiers didn’t die in battle but while on the move or even in their dreams…… there were even a few who chose to kill themselves.”
“The life of a soldier is not easy, and the same goes for you generals. Running a military requires strict discipline, and you need to plan the next step immediately after encamping. You not only need to give commands during battle, but you also need to personally participate. Soldiers need to give their strength and their lives, while generals need to give their hearts and minds in addition to their strength and their lives…… Soldiers may want to die from exhaustion, while generals may want to cry from torment.”
“You could say that, even though the Heavenly Might Battalion has managed to accomplish many glorious feats deep in Ravager territory, those feats were built upon a foundation of sacrifice and suffering. There were many times where you all should have died, but somehow you managed to survive, and if it weren’t for my help, you would all have died. But all I can do for you is stall for a few days. The rations I brought are going to run out soon, right? No matter how conservative you are with them and how much we try and plunder the people around us, we are going to run into a supply crisis sooner or later.”
“That’s why Ravager territory is not the place for the Heavenly Might Battalion to stay, and the days that you all have passed through are not days that people can live for an extended period of time. That’s why you want to leave, and that’s why you all miss home so much.”
The generals were all rendered speechless by his words.
“But I am different,” Su Chen said.
“I have the ability to disguise myself and can transform into a Ravager at will. I have the Silver Moon Shuttle, which is exceptionally fast, so I will be fine as long as I don’t run into someone as powerful as a Head Chieftain. To me, the risk of living in Ravager territory is far lower than for the Heavenly Might Battalion. Not only so, but my quality of life won’t decrease. Because I am alone and have a lot of money on me, I can fill my Origin Ring with enough supplies to last for ten years. I don’t need to worry about resources or a supply of them, so my life will be much easier. As such, none of the sufferings the Heavenly Might Battalion needed to go through are a problem for me.”
“There is no threat or challenge for me to live here, but I can stand to profit much more here than I can in Long Sang Country. Every individual in Ravager territory is an enemy. I can do my business without worry; I can kill whoever I please, and I can experiment on whoever I want to experiment on. I will have no burden on my morality. Also, I can obtain all kinds of precious ingredients to haul in big profits. I already have an inconceivable amount of wealth just based on what the Heavenly Might Battalion has given me along with what I managed to snag from the Beasts. Even though I have lots of money in Long Sang Country as well, that is all because of my Instructor. Here, everything I have obtained is due to my own efforts. The feeling is completely different.”
Su Chen chuckled as he continued, “So even though this place is a place of torment for the Heavenly Might Battalion, to me it is a place of chance, a place of destiny. My research has advanced in leaps and bounds here, my consciousness power has skyrocketed, I managed to complete the Immaculate Cultivation Technique, and I am even upgrading the Ferocious Race…… It could be said that, during this period of time, my strength, my understanding of the world around me, and the amount of resources I possess have all increased significantly. Working on things behind closed doors all the time is not enough; from time to time, I need to go out and see the outside world to broaden my horizons. That is the way for me to gain more knowledge and achieve greater results.”
Su Chen paused momentarily.
Then, he continued, “Most importantly, I have a feeling.”
“I believe that I can complete the technique for reaching the Light Shaking Realm without a bloodline here!”