Chapter 478: Pleasing Both Sides

In a few days, when Jerome and the others arrived, they would be able to reunite properly, and Rod’s mood improved significantly at that moment. Amid the pleasant atmosphere, the group seemed to regain some of their old feelings—laughing and chatting about what had happened to them over the years. Listening to their stories, Rod felt deeply moved; it was clear they had encountered many things on the continent.

It wasn’t until late at night that they finally parted. Watching them walk away, Rod let out a long sigh—his worries had finally been resolved. Back in his own residence, Nightingale, Lucy, and the others seemed to be waiting for him. Sognar was there too.

“How is it? Is everything okay?” As soon as they saw Rod return, they rushed over to ask, worried that something might have happened to him. After all, they now knew what had happened before and were afraid he still hadn’t figured things out.

“It’s fine. Hehe, don’t worry. By the way, the Lance Empire has put forward a good proposal—take a look!” With a smile, Rod reassured them before sharing Marshal Okaz’s words and seeking their opinions.

“Hmm, this is a good idea. If we really cooperate, our Dark Source will be able to gain a firm foothold on the continent. Although the Lance Empire will benefit a lot, we will too—it’s a win-win situation!” Lilith, who saw things clearly, said after some thought.

“The Meidis Empire’s thoughts are probably similar. Let’s discuss this thoroughly with the Wolf Emperor tomorrow and try to get more benefits for ourselves!” After thinking for a while, Rod said to the group. This wasn’t something he could decide alone; he needed to consult them, as they were the ones most directly affected. As for the Meidis Empire, Rod wasn’t afraid they wouldn’t bend.

Now he had an extra trump card in hand, making the situation far better than before. If the Meidis Empire put forward harsh conditions, he only needed to hint slightly at the Lance Empire’s intentions, and they would likely change their minds. Besides, the Lance Empire’s proposal was made from the perspective of their own interests. If the Lance Empire could think of forming an alliance, then surely the Meidis Empire could too—they might even offer even greater benefits.

What Rod and the others need to do now is simple: integrate the three aspects to achieve a win-win situation. This is beneficial for everyone, as the Source of Darkness must maintain good relations and cooperate with these powerful nations if it wants to take root on the continent for a long time. As outsiders, they are still somewhat inferior.
“Hmm, this needs careful discussion!” Everyone nodded in agreement after hearing Rod’s words.
“By the way, how’s the contact with the strongmen on the continent going?” Rod turned to Sognar and asked. This guy had returned just in time; he had been worried he might not make it, but it seemed he had been overthinking.
“All contacts have been made. They’ll all arrive in a few days. Damn it, there are quite a few strongmen on the continent!” Thinking of the people he had met recently, Sognar sighed. “I’m going into seclusion as soon as I get back!” He pouted in dissatisfaction. He had no objection to being surpassed by Rod and the others—they were beyond comparison to freaks like him. But these people on the continent had always been looked down upon by those of the Source of Darkness. Now that so many had surpassed him, Sognar naturally felt resentful.
It seemed he had been quite shaken, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. At least it could spur his fighting spirit and encourage him to train harder. His talent was excellent; if he were willing to train, reaching the Yin Huang realm would be a trivial matter for him.
“Ah, and that guy from the church! Damn it, I almost got killed by that old man. That bastard must be at the Yang Xuan realm—we need to be careful! There are quite a few strongmen in the church, especially that light magic mage. I think they’re targeting us, the Source of Darkness!” Thinking of the church, Sognar still felt uneasy, his expression grim.
Seeing his state, the others exchanged smiles, knowing he must have suffered a lot from the church, otherwise he wouldn’t react like this. This made them laugh even more, further frustrating Sognar. The old man at the Yang Xuan realm Sognar mentioned was likely the Pope—no one else in the church could possess such strength. However, the fact that the Pope had reached the Yang Xuan realm really surprised Rod, showing that the church was indeed a place full of hidden talents.
“When will they arrive!!” After thinking for a moment, Rod asked again.

“Just in these few days, by the time I returned, they had already set off. That old man was still clamoring to see what strength our Source of Darkness had! Damn it, you might as well slap him to death then!” With a smirk, Sognar began to stir up discord.

The others exchanged bitter smiles without saying a word. How could they not know Sognar’s character?

Now, everyone involved had been contacted, and the negotiation conference was about to begin. Of course, that wasn’t the key point. The real priorities were coordinating with these powerful figures for the war against gods and demons, as well as finding the host for the Demon General—those were the crucial steps.

That night, everyone parted only in the late hours, as expected. The next day, Rod went to see the Wolf King and the others early on to tell them the terms offered by the Lance Empire and gauge their reactions.

They hadn’t expected the Lance Empire to propose such terms so suddenly and almost agreed right away. It was only with Rod’s reminder that they calmed down somewhat. In the end, they decided to investigate the stance of the Meidis Empire first, hoping to gain more benefits. At the same time, at Rod’s suggestion, they agreed to accept the Lance Empire’s alliance proposal, with one condition: the Dark Duchy and the Lance Empire must become strategic partners, with tariff exemptions and free trade. This trade zone needed to be fully opened up.

As for the Meidis Empire, its terms certainly couldn’t be worse than those of the Lance Empire—at the very least, they had to be equal. Of course, Rod and the others wouldn’t miss the chance to extract more advantages.

It would still take a few days for the powerful figures from other parts of the continent to arrive in Qiushui City. The negotiation conference could only begin after all of them had arrived, so those remaining days were for Rod and the others to take action.

First, the Wolf King and the others approached Okaz and presented their demands. The Lance Empire was naturally willing to accept these demands, as they saw no loss at all. Especially after learning that the Meidis Empire was also in contact with the Dark Duchy, they grew even more anxious.

If the Meidis Empire formed an alliance first, they would be in trouble. If their own alliance failed, the consequences would be disastrous. They didn’t want to face that, so rather than suffer more losses later, they decided to give up some benefits now to achieve a win-win situation for everyone.

Of course, they surely had some dissatisfaction with the bilateral alliance involving the Dark Duchy, but it was still better than not forming any alliance at all. With a bilateral alliance, at least it could serve as a buffer, preventing them from being exploited by the Meidis Empire—this was also the Empire’s minimum goal before they set out.

Rod and his group began to act in a fickle manner, courting both sides. They maintained contact with both the Lance Empire and the Okaz Empire, ensuring neither side was neglected!

After learning of the conditions and demands put forward by the Lance Empire, the Meidis Empire naturally became anxious. After a day of urgent discussions, they offered conditions no worse than those of the Lance Empire—also handing over those towns to the Source of Darkness while establishing trade cooperation! After all, such terms were not too much for a great empire like theirs. More importantly, everyone had seen the power of the Source of Darkness, so cooperation was clearly advantageous for them—a true win-win situation!

Although they were aware of the bilateral cooperation with the Source of Darkness, it was still better than being drawn into the other side’s camp and later turned against them. This was also the Meidis Empire’s minimum requirement.

Thus, unbeknownst to many, the Source of Darkness had reached an agreement with the two most crucial countries in these negotiations—two great empires. The agreement was to preserve the Dark Duchy, with the Source of Darkness forming a bilateral alliance with the two empires, acting as a buffer that allowed mutual trade and interaction.

The two empires also accepted this reality. The Lance Empire was unwilling to engage in conflict with the Meidis Empire, and the Meidis Empire didn’t seem as aggressive as the Lance Empire had imagined. Perhaps it had been so before, but after years of war, they had suffered significant losses and needed time to recover, nor did they wish to fight the Lance Empire.

The small duchies in between had now been absorbed by the Source of Darkness, along with several of their own small cities, forming a new Dark Duchy. This was undoubtedly the best buffer—no one wanted to provoke this Dark Duchy. Though it seemed small, its strength was well-known, making it the ideal choice as a buffer.

Both sides were happy to accept this win-win situation. Under such circumstances, it even didn’t matter whether negotiations continued or not—since the two key powers had reached an agreement, what could the smaller countries do? Besides, since their economic interests weren’t involved, even if they had objections, they seemed ineffective.

A few days before the negotiations began, the three parties met again and finalized the matter, reaching a consensus. Although both countries disliked each other, they had no choice but to accept such an agreement. With everyone’s approval, the negotiations were practically over; the talks set to start in three days were merely a formality. No one could have imagined that everything would have already been resolved before the negotiations even started.