"Truly insane people will never know that they're insane. Rather than believing that they're the only abnormal one, they'd rather believe that the entire world has gone insane and that they're the only normal person. – By Roland. "
In the royal palace, formal negotiations with the Xiluo Empire's envoy were ongoing. However, the most important matters would have to be discussed in private. Countless trivial details and underhanded deals had to be arranged under the cover of night.
The Xiluo Empire was the only undead country in the world. Joining the Mist Alliance was already expected, but it would be meaningless if it was only in name. The alliance would deepen the relationship between the two countries, but how to deepen it, how to deepen it, and how to deepen it, all the complicated details would have to be discussed in person by the core members of both countries.
Business, trade, diplomatic, military, and more than 30 other agreements had been signed. And this was only the beginning. Without all sorts of convenient and regular channels of communication, without everyone being united, how could it possibly be called an alliance?
The future Mist Alliance would be incredibly large, but that didn't mean that all the allied countries would be united in every situation. After all, every country would have their own reasons for wanting to join the Mist Alliance. In the end, the power to speak would still be in the hands of the allied countries.
Just like in other worlds, in the X Alliance and X Alliance, even if the rules stated that all countries were equal, regardless of size, the true power to speak would always be in the hands of one or two countries.
In my mind, since I was destined to find allies, then the Xiluo Empire would probably be the most trustworthy ally apart from the Sleuweir Kingdom and the Donglan Principality.
Yes, I didn't have much confidence in the human kingdoms in the Northlands. Species with short lifespans had short lifespans, and the rapid change in the throne was one of the reasons, but the worst part was that the human kingdoms themselves were fickle and that some nobles and royalty had no bottom line.
This time, I wasn't just representing East Mist. I was also representing Sleuweir, or perhaps I could even say the entire People of the Mist. The final goal of all these alliances was to reach an agreement with the mega empire Xiluo in all aspects. This would allow me to form a small alliance within the Mist Alliance that would have the right to speak.
"In that case, after I return, the entire Xiluo Empire will announce that Wumianzhe's church is the national religion … Undead can worship a God, and even receive God's Blessing? Will there really be an Undead Holy Knight in the future? That's so strange. "
"Cough." I coughed lightly in displeasure. What's wrong with the Holy Knight? Am I being shot while lying down?
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty. It's not that I have anything against you."
Lionheart didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he shook his head. He was the main negotiator for the Xiluo Empire on this matter. As for Omar … After playing for a while, he got bored and fell asleep on his own. He hugged his teddy bear and slept soundly.
"… Omar has been having a lot of fun these past few days. By the way, Your Majesty, are you not intending to come back? If you retake the throne, Omar will probably listen to you obediently."
"I'm not interested. I'm a living person now. How can I rule the kingdom of the dead? Besides, with you guys around, there's no need for me to go through so much trouble … Yes, I'm a living person. Even if there's an epitaph and a monument, I'm still a living person!"
"Then, let's move on to the next item. Regarding the disposal of the slaves …"
Due to our special relationship (we were one big family) and the Xiluo Empire's unique political system (100% dictatorship), as long as we came to an agreement, this matter was basically settled. The negotiations went so smoothly that it was as if we were having a casual conversation during a normal meal.
However, even if we came to an agreement, it would still be quite troublesome to actually do it.
For example, regarding the serious differences in the social system. Since we worshipped the God of Law, then we had to at least make sure that the innocent were equal on the surface. Although I didn't add any intense words like "everyone is equal" or "defeat the corrupt nobles" in my teachings in order to prevent the nobles from ganging up on me the moment I was born, I didn't add any intense words like "everyone is equal" or "defeat the corrupt nobles" in my teachings. However, after Wumianzhe's teachings spread out, since those who didn't commit crimes should have the same status and rights, then so-called slaves shouldn't even exist in such a society.
Abolish slavery? That was only natural. However, the problem was that the current Xiluo Empire's upper echelons were all high-level undead. The living were actually the main force of the slaves. Most high-level undead only treated the living as playthings and experimental materials. Abolishing slavery would mean a complete reversal of society's structure, liberating the lower echelons to the middle echelons. I had to be careful about this.
The great majority of high-level undead weren't like my knight or the Four Heavenly Kings before me. From a certain standpoint, the Holy Church's words were correct. Causing death and suffering for the living was a rare form of entertainment for the undead. It was the undead's nature to enjoy watching others suffer. And even the most ancient and undying high-level undead treated torturing the living and souls as an art. They enjoyed the pleasure of torturing their souls. Trying to change their views would be no different than killing them again.
However, it was precisely because this was a purely authoritarian society that some things were easier to do.
"… Then let's split them up. You all have time on your hands anyways, so take your time. Of course, if they still can't coexist in the end, let's have them become cannon fodder. With Omar around, I refuse to believe that they can overturn the heavens. "
With Omar's soul network, it would be impossible for any of his subordinates to resist his will. Back in the day, I had considered how difficult it would be to deal with even the Undead Lords, and that the new Xiluo Empire would need to have complete centralization of power. In that case, my successor would need to be a perfect autocratic ruler.
Omar, who had been created with such a goal, placed too much emphasis on his natural talents. But later, the situation and mindset changed, and I felt that that wasn't the most suitable path for me. Omar was even more likely to be a sensitive newborn who discovered that his "father" hated him, which was why he started a riot.
The ironic part was that after all these changes, everything returned to the starting point. It was still this young ruler who ascended to the throne. In the end, I would still have to rely on his power to realize what I wanted. When I thought about this and looked at the "big child" who was drooling on the table, I felt that I should treat him slightly better in the future.
"Ah, Father, why are you so thin and weak? Didn't you eat properly? Come, Omar, let's work out together. ONE, TWO, LITTLE APPLE! "
Alright then, his sleep-talking caused me to retract my rare kindness. I really wanted to knock him awake with a brick. I had had enough of square dancing and divine music.
There would be no end to this. I did my best to focus on the important matters at hand.
"Now then, the next problem is the issue of communication between the two countries."
Besides, it wasn't just the difference in social systems that would easily cause problems. If we wanted to form a substantial alliance, our geographical situation wasn't ideal. Previously, we were too far away from each other, and it was inconvenient for us to communicate with each other. However, I already had a solution to this problem.
"How's the progress on the Greedy Wolves?"
Lionheart was quite excited when I mentioned the Greedy Wolves. After seeing that gigantic warbeast that would mark the end of its era, he admired the person before him more and more. Unknowingly, Roland was also leading the way in this era.
"I just received news from my home country that with Mizar's technology and the abundant resources available in our country, the Greedy Wolves should be able to complete its main structure within three months if we successfully break through the technical difficulties. The outer shell and main weapons should be completed within six months, and it should be ready for its first flight within a year."
Perhaps it was due to the influence of the great ocean battles back on Earth, but even though airships in this world were still mainly used to transport soldiers, I still favored airships. In my mind, a single airship wouldn't have much meaning. If I didn't create a sufficient number of functional airships to form an airship fleet, the true trump card of the "Envy" Borealis wouldn't be able to be used.
The Big Dipper airship fleet was the future number one airship fleet of Donglan and even the Mist Alliance. Its flagship was the Borealis, and its fleet consisted of seven mega airships named after the seven stars of the Big Dipper: Greedy Wolves, Mizar, Lucun, Wenqu, Lianqu, Wuqu, and Destruction. Each of these airships had different functions and sizes. Greedy Wolves was the first airship to be built by the Xiluo Empire. However, progress could only be described as barely smooth. In order to make it appear before the military parade, the second airship, the Mizar, was the first to be completed.
Of course, the current Mizar was nothing more than a frighteningly empty shell. It would take at least half a year before all the equipment, personnel, weapons, and so on could be completed.
Actually, this was already quite fast. War weapons weren't cabbages that could be easily created. Many countries would need half a century just to prepare a single elite Knight squadron.
What? The Borealis could be used as soon as it was built? The Auland Empire had once brought a Quasi Mega Battleship. After several generations of painstaking effort, the only thing left was that Mega Battleship. The weapons, equipment, personnel, command system, and hull modules were all ready-made. Not to mention, Envy's Undead transformation had all increased the capabilities of the Mega Battleship, giving it life.
By the time I received the airship, it was already more than 90% complete. All that was left was to add more people so that these newbies would become more and more familiar with the airship's commands. Yep, although this sounded quite awkward, the airship's understanding of its own physical body far surpassed that of any engineer. It would be strange if it wasn't fast.
And now, it was the second and third airship. Although we had the technology, it was still far from being ready. We could only keep moving forward as we explored.
"The first flight can be completed within a year? That's already faster than expected. Yep, then we'll start designing the Lucun and Wenqu airships. I'll leave the Wuqu and Lianzhen airships to you. Let's leave the Vanquishing Army for now. The entire airship fleet should have combat strength within three years. "
"Yep, as long as no major changes occur, this mission should be completed. Or rather, as long as there's no new war, it's possible to complete it earlier. "
Reinhardt considered the situation in the country and made a promise.
"In that case, the Mizar will temporarily travel between Diffindor and Xiluo, while the Borealis will be used for inland transportation. It's fine to use an undead airship as a large merchant ship, but it'll probably be troublesome to use it to transport living people. How about we have the gnomes sell insurance for the passengers? We'll probably make a huge profit. "
"Right, where's Ah Dang? I'm going on a long trip, and I want to bring him along. You guys want to go as well? No, I'm going to a human country. That place is very sensitive to the undead, and he seems to be the only one who can perfectly disguise himself as a living person … "
"The second … the former Second Senator Feyman has returned? That's to be expected. If he joins the Undead Emperors of the Undead Planes, what better vanguard and guide would there be? If I were one of those Undead Emperors, I'd definitely send him out as cannon fodder … I mean, vanguard, to test the reactions of the various worlds. "
"The First Senator Gricasio? It's only normal that there's no news of him. Gricasio's power level is unfathomable. Back in the day, I only cooperated with him. Don't look at how lazy he is, he actually has a fierce personality and thinks highly of himself. I don't believe that he'll obediently listen to any Undead Emperor's orders. "
"The Undead Planes are becoming more and more active? That's to be expected, but be careful not to interact too much with them. Undead Emperors aren't easy to deal with. Even you shouldn't directly face them. "
Many minor details were taken care of. By the time I left, it was almost midnight.
What, that silver-haired female elf who was secretly inviting me to her upcoming concert? Today's weather was so nice. I didn't see or hear anything at all.
I looked at the sky outside and stretched. If I went back at this time, I would probably have to listen to a certain person's endless complaints. Just as I was hesitating about whether or not I should find a place to cause a ruckus all night, or drag Adam out for a drink, a majestic figure blocked my way.
"Estrada?"
…
"You're in big trouble."
I wasn't surprised at all when Estrada started off with such a sentence. After all, he seemed to have greatly offended the Holy Church this time.
"I'm not here to fight. At the very least, I'm here to talk to you."
But since Estrada made it clear from the very start that he was here to talk, I relaxed. At the very least, I closed the door to my Frigidwinter Earth. The abnormal ice suddenly disappeared just as abruptly as it had appeared.
"The new Pope was so angered by you that he fainted on the spot. He almost returned to the God of Holy Light's embrace …"
"No need to waste your breath. You, Estrada, probably aren't that free."
"… Since the path of Holy Light is unable to be saved, what do you intend to do?"
I hesitated as I looked at this man who suddenly aged several decades. His belief in the Holy Light was almost instinctive, and I wasn't sure why he had come here.
In the end, I still nodded.
"Um, let me introduce you to a school. It's called Nanxiang. What? Relax, he doesn't teach digging … I don't even need an excavator to do that. "
I never expected that there would be a day when I would give this stubborn teacher a recommendation letter.
"You were prepared? You knew that I would come looking for you? "
"Of course … not. It's just that I don't want any Holy Knight to secretly come looking for me, so I wrote a few more letters. Right, Aivla is there as well. You can talk to her more. But it's best if you put on some makeup when you go in. If your Pope hears about this and really dies, I'll be in big trouble. "
"Right, your Bishop Soros is too old. It's best not to tell him. I'll feel bad if something happens to him. What, he's already been stripped of his teaching position and has returned home to farm? Ah, it's really sad (pleasing to see). "
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