Chapter 498: The Alliance

After some small talk, they got down to business. Rod cleared his throat, and the atmosphere gradually settled as everyone realized it was time to discuss serious matters. They all pricked up their ears and turned their attention fully to him.

Everyone knew why they had gathered there today, so the mood instantly became serious and somber.

“I believe everyone has seen the strength of those demon souls. The matter of forming an alliance is urgent—we can’t delay any longer!” Rod said in a deep voice after glancing around the room.

There really wasn’t much time left. A hundred years might seem like an extremely long time to ordinary people, even a lifetime, but for these warriors who had reached the divine realm, it wasn’t very long at all. There were many here who had already lived for a hundred years. Once they reached the divine realm, living another two hundred years wouldn’t be a problem, especially those who had reached the Yin Huang and Yang Xuan realms.

For those like Rod who had obtained divine statuses, a hundred years was merely a small fraction of their lives—their existence stretched far beyond that.

“The reason we’ve gathered everyone here this time, aside from previous negotiations and dealing with the Demon General, is to form an alliance. We need to establish a defensive and offensive alliance between the continent and the Source of Darkness.

With the Gate of Gods and Demons open, the war between gods and demons is about to begin. We have very little time left. If we can’t form an alliance to fight against these demon souls, this war will repeat the tragedy of a million years ago. Then, demons will rule the world, and both humans and our magical beast clans will become slaves, with no hope of prosperity. I believe everyone can imagine what that would mean!”

After Rod finished speaking, the Wolf King added his remarks. Then he nodded at the Pope, signaling him to continue—this had been agreed upon beforehand.

After all, the gap between the Source of Darkness and the continent remains too great, especially that Dark Kingdom from three thousand years ago, which had a profound impact on the continent. The words of the Source of Darkness lack much persuasiveness, but the Church is different—it has endured for hundreds of thousands of years and holds a significant position on the continent. Although the Church’s influence back then was nothing compared to now, as it was too fragile at that time and failed to make much of a difference, it has developed astonishingly over these past few thousand years, establishing an unparalleled status on the continent. Especially after the destruction of the Dark Duchy, taking advantage of that momentum, the Church grew at a terrifying pace.

Today, in the hearts of everyone on the continent, the Church is a symbol of light, a representative of brightness, and an envoy of the gods. Its words carry far more weight than those of Rod and others combined.

At the signal from the Wolf King, the Pope also stepped forward and came to the center of the hall. Looking at the group, he said, “I needn’t elaborate much. As everyone can see, I’ll tell you what my Church knows about the War between Gods and Demons…”

To form an alliance, it was first necessary for everyone to understand the importance and consequences of that war in order to achieve better results. So the Pope recounted the origins of the Church, the stories of the God of Light and the God of War, as well as the details of the last War between Gods and Demons.

Instantly, the atmosphere in the hall became oppressive and utterly silent, with only the Pope’s voice and heavy breathing audible. Hearing about the last War between Gods and Demons, everyone’s expression changed, as it seemed the situation was even more serious than they had imagined.

When the Pope finished speaking, there was only silence in the room; no one spoke, and everyone’s face showed deep concern. They frowned and exchanged glances, unsure what to say, communicating through their eyes.

“What kind of alliance would this be? Who would lead, who would support, and how should we cooperate?” Finally, the former president of the Warriors’ Association, an old man at the Yin Yellow realm, stepped forward and asked in a grave voice.

On the continent, aside from a few great empires, the Power of the Church was the strongest, even surpassing that of the empires. Following closely were the Warriors’ Association and the Mages’ Guild—these two organizations were sacred to all warriors and mages, possessing absolute authority, and their roles could not be underestimated.

“That’s exactly what we need to discuss today. As for who will be in charge and who will be subordinate, there’s no need to worry. What we pursue is a fair partnership—becoming comrades, not master and servant! The key to cooperation lies in strengthening our strength to confront the Demonic Souls. Everyone here is among the best in the continent, and you must realize what would happen if we faced a war between gods and demons with our current strength! What we need to do now is unite closely and enhance our strength. Over the course of a hundred years, we must build an army that is no less powerful than that of the Demonic Souls to prepare for that war in a hundred years.” Hearing the words of the former president of the Warriors Association, Rod added, and these words made the people of the continent breathe a sigh of relief. This was precisely what they feared the most—once cooperating, they had seen the dominance of the Source of Darkness. If there was to be a hierarchy, their continent would surely end up in a subordinate position, ruled by others. This was their greatest concern. After all, at such a level, everyone has pride and refuses to be subordinate to others. Moreover, everyone knew the relationship between the Source of Darkness and the continent, which made them even less willing to be under someone else’s rule! “If we cooperate, we will adopt a parliamentary system, with twelve seats in total: six from the continent and six from the Source of Darkness. Any major decision will be made through voting. For a decision to be implemented, it must pass the vote of the parliament, requiring approval from more than half of the members, thus avoiding dictatorship. In this way, there will be no distinction between primary and secondary roles; all issues will be centered around this parliament, with both sides cooperating and progressing together.” After some thought, Rod continued to explain his ideas. His words sparked discussions among the attendees. A parliamentary system was something they had never encountered before; they were used to dictatorial systems typical of empires or kingdoms. The proposal of this system gave everyone a sense of hope. Twelve seats, with the continent holding six, meant half of the power, putting it on equal footing with the Source of Darkness. It was clear that the Source of Darkness had made the greatest concessions, while also preventing it from becoming overly dominant. As everyone discussed, they nodded in agreement, feeling some hope for this proposed system.

“This matter must not be known by the countries and people on the continent. Even those in the Dark Source who have not reached the divine level are not qualified to know about it, to avoid unnecessary trouble. I’ve already said this!
Everyone knows the benefits of establishing this alliance—to prevent chaos—and there’s another purpose as well: to learn from each other, exchange skills, and improve our own strength!”
Rod was quite satisfied with the reactions of those below. After a pause, he continued.
Huh… There was an uproar among them. Learning from and exchanging skills with others was an opportunity they rarely got. At this level, finding a rival was extremely difficult, yet such exchanges were essential for advancement. This was why the continent struggled to produce strong warriors—there were too few, creating a vicious cycle. But the Dark Source was different; it was full of strong warriors. This purpose seemed to be designed specifically for the continent, much to everyone’s surprise and excitement.
The Wolf King and the others exchanged glances upon seeing this and smiled. It seemed there were no difficulties left. Several consecutive problems had been solved smoothly, and the results looked quite good.
“Additionally, we will select a group of highly talented individuals from the continent for specialized training, so they can make the greatest progress in the shortest time possible and reach the divine level, even the Yin Huang or Yang Xuan realm. I believe we have the ability to achieve this within a hundred years.
Many people know the members of the Death Scythe Squad. They were originally ordinary members of the continent, but within a few years, several of them reached the divine level. The results are right before everyone’s eyes—no further explanation needed!”
Then Rod revealed the second purpose.
This undoubtedly caused a storm of excitement. To cultivate strong warriors for the continent, everyone looked at each other, filled with enthusiasm. More strong warriors on the continent would definitely be a good thing for them.
Several consecutive agreements were favorable to the continent—a result no one could have predicted, leaving everyone shocked yet filled with passion.

And these are precisely the goals that Rod, the Wolf King, and others aim to achieve; cooperation is essential. As for the council, their six seats are sufficient, and they can even try to take control of more seats on the continent. Of course, that’s for later. In any case, the Source of Darkness will not suffer any loss. By nurturing the younger generation, the magical beast families of the Source of Darkness will also produce outstanding individuals. But everyone knows that a hundred years is too short for magical beasts, so they can only focus on the younger generation on the continent. It’s inevitable, and now is not the time to worry about such things.
“How about it? Are there any other questions?” Seeing the growing chatter below, Rod cleared his throat a few times before asking calmly. He then turned his gaze to the Pope. The Pope was also somewhat surprised, clearly not expecting Rod to offer such favorable terms. Previously, he only knew about establishing the council and had no idea of the Source of Darkness’s plans. He had been worried about this matter, but now it seemed he no longer had any concerns.