Negotiations were essentially about compromising. Both sides would pay a certain price to reach an agreement.
That was why, in a negotiation, if one accidentally revealed one's own territory, one would be forced into a passive position. And if the other side blocked the crucial part of the negotiation, it would be only natural that one would lose.
In that case, the moment that I learned of Sandro's desires, I was already destined to have the upper hand in this negotiation. Since our bargaining chips weren't equal, it would be impossible for me to lose.
Sandro needed my help, and I didn't care if he didn't exist. Our unequal negotiating position not only gave me the upper hand, but also allowed me to state any price I wanted.
"… At the very least, I know that Aso definitely doesn't desire a country of the undead. He spent so much effort to corrupt all of Bardi in order to create a country where both the living and the undead could coexist. A pure country of the undead wouldn't be able to last long in the mortal plane."
A country of the undead would break the Cycle of Reincarnation from the very start, cutting off the source of belief. Even if the Gods could tolerate it, the natural balance of this land would eventually collapse.
The Undead Emperors were mages, so it was impossible for them not to have researched such things. Even during the Tark Republic's prime, the Undead Emperors weren't foolish enough to transform everyone into undead. That would be the equivalent of cutting off the entire country's future and hope.
"… In that case, there's only one way for you to revive the Tark Republic. Rather than working so hard to conquer a territory and then using countless years and goodwill in exchange for peace with the humans, why don't you just join me? After all, the Mist Alliance has already accepted the Xiluo Empire, so why can't we have another Tark Republic?"
In normal situations, reviving the Tark Republic would first require victory in the Holy War, obtaining a piece of land amidst the vicious battle between Order and Chaos, and then establishing a new country. After establishing a new country, the Undead Emperors would also need to consider their relationship with other species, as well as the attitude of the newly born Gods.
The Undead Emperors would definitely be at the Myth level. Those old Undead Emperors would definitely be powerful enough to threaten the Gods and Main Gods. The Main God Conservation definitely wouldn't be the most difficult Undead Emperor to deal with. From what I knew, Sandro was far more dangerous than ten Conservations combined. But even if the Undead Emperors worked together, even the most optimistic scenario wouldn't guarantee victory in the Holy War.
The undead army was incredibly powerful. They had high-level, strategic weapons, and an endless supply of cannon fodder. Their greatest weakness was the living's natural hostility towards the undead. It would be impossible for them to have sufficiently strong allies. The giants would have to worry about being turned into bone giants by the undead. The Dragons would naturally be hostile towards the undead because they were bone dragons. The Gods were even more hostile towards the undead who broke the Cycle of Reincarnation and wasted belief.
Right now, the undead still didn't have a stable territory. They were still in a weak position. The entire world still didn't take them seriously enough. In fact, the undead were even viewed as chess pieces that could be used. But if the undead really managed to occupy enough territory and reestablish the Undead Empire, which was a positive trend … then the entire world would become the undead's enemy!
The Xiluo Empire was the most qualified to say this. After so many years, not only did the Xiluo Empire not have a single ally, other countries were still hostile towards the Xiluo Empire even when their entire territory was a desert or swamp where the living were forbidden. The Xiluo Empire was always on guard against the Xiluo Empire. As long as the Xiluo Empire dared to attack any human country, they would definitely be greeted by a "righteous allied army".
This wasn't fair, but it was the truth. Compared to racial discrimination, discrimination against the living and the undead was something that was only natural and absolutely righteous. The undead and undead mages' actions throughout history also gave the Xiluo Empire sufficient evidence to support this discrimination and prejudice.
"… Unless we also find a no-man's land, it's impossible for the Undead Empire to reestablish itself."
I refused to believe that any wise Undead Emperor wouldn't be able to see this.
However, an existence capable of overcoming the theoretical impossibility and becoming an Undead Emperor had managed to find a method. That's right, it was Aso.
Aso's plan was quite comprehensive. He slowly made his plans, and then he would invade a certain country like a parasite. He would then use that country's shell to develop international relations. The living and the undead would live together, and the undead would gradually become the country's backbone. This would make other countries tacitly acknowledge the undead's existence and lower the level of hostility. Then, when the time was right, he would change the undead's skin … Wasn't this quite similar to establishing a fake government in an enemy country? Indeed, it was the same thing in terms of reducing hostility and variables.
But now, this was no longer possible.
It could be said that the moment that Aso collapsed meant that the undead invasion had mysteriously failed. And as I analyzed Aso's memories and knowledge, not only did I feel more and more admiration for him, I also understood why Aso had given me all of his memories.
The Mage Country's Cloud Tower's "nuclear bomb" aimed directly at the Truth Symposium, the alchemy formula capable of transforming Bardi citizens into undead, the control over Orloss, and the list of spies among the various countries' higher-ups who were tempted by the undead and tempted by the undead. These were all major killing machines. It was obvious what would happen if they fell into the hands of an ambitious schemer.
For Aso, this was a gamble. It was a gamble of "since there's no worse choice, why don't I just toss the nuclear button to another Undead Emperor and try it out?" It was a gamble with no chance of losing. If I was a normal Undead Emperor … no, as long as I was an Undead Lord like Harloys, no, even if I was an ordinary human, just imagining what I would do after obtaining these chips was enough to terrify me.
"I" would take over Aso's information network in the Bardi Empire and carry out a large-scale transformation of the entire country into undead. I would then use my control valve to control Emperor Orloss, directly taking control of the entire Bardi Kingdom. I would also be able to use a nuclear bomb to kill all the Mage Country's higher-ups, completely eliminating the most dangerous external threat.
And then … and then all I would have to do was wait for the Holy War to truly arrive. Various Undead Emperors would descend, and the Undead Calamity would arrive.
During this process, "I" would obtain many benefits. In fact, I would even be able to take control of the strongest country in the entire continent and become a supreme ruler. But by then, the Tark Republic would have a stable foundation and would have more than half successfully revived. The Tark Republic would also have a golden start, and the Undead Emperors wouldn't miss out on such an excellent opportunity. The possibility of the Tark Republic splitting apart would also be greatly reduced, and Aso's dream would be realized.
This wasn't a random guess of mine. As I analyzed Aso's memories, not only did I find the reason why my analysis was so slow, I also found the key that Aso had set up for me: "The desire for greater power and authority."
"Desire power and an even higher status. I shall give you the bargaining chips and power to become the ruler of the Bardi Empire."
This sounded quite chuunibyou, but this was the key that Aso had set up for me. And when such a treasure was right in front of them, how many people would be able to resist their instincts?
Desiring more power and authority was basically a natural instinct for all living beings. Ambitious individuals would naturally use the bargaining chips that they obtained to become even more powerful. And so, Aso's goal had been realized.
It could be said that if it wasn't for the fact that I was a bit of a freak … ahem, I meant that I was different from everyone else, I probably would have fallen for Aso's trap.
And if it wasn't for the fact that I was so ambitious (which would be unthinkable for an Undead Emperor), my analysis speed would naturally have been much slower. In that case, the nuclear bomb that Aso had left in the Truth Symposium really might have been detonated by Aso, which would have prematurely eliminated the greatest threat that the Undead Emperors were likely to face after invading the Bardi Empire — the human archmages.
Right before Aso's death, Aso had completed such a scheme that had a deep understanding of human nature. No matter if he won or lost, he would have benefited from it. Even if he died, his dream would still have been realized. Even though I had raised my opinion of Undead Emperor Aso countless times, I still had to admit that I was impressed.
Cough, I was getting off topic. Looking at it from another angle, killing Aso had truly been a stroke of luck. And, Aso's death also meant that the Tark Republic's revival had met with an obstacle.
The Undead Emperors were no idiots. In fact, it was the opposite. Their intelligence was definitely at the peak of the entire universe. They were willing to agree to Aso's invasion because there was a chance of success. Now that the success rate had been greatly reduced, they naturally began to make their own calculations. Everyone's morale was gone. Not only would they be unable to lead the Undead Emperors, they would also directly disband.
Although the Undead Emperors themselves knew that this would only result in them disbanding and returning home, this seemed to be an acceptable result. At the very least, it was better than gambling everything they had on a gamble with a low chance of success and losing everything … Actually, when I thought about this, I felt that sometimes it was better for people to be a bit more foolish. Many idiots managed to accomplish great feats through sheer willpower that "smart people" would never be able to accomplish in their entire lives. Meanwhile, many "smart people" who could have accomplished such feats felt that they were "impossible" and "a waste of their lives and time," so they gave up on the opportunity that should have been theirs.
But from a certain standpoint, the undead didn't have much need for the mortal plane, which was the main reason why they lacked fighting spirit. They weren't like the other dimensional invaders who desired more space to live and a better future for their species. Apart from a very small minority, most Undead Emperors had only returned to their mortal plane for the sake of their former country's glory. They would immediately retreat and start making small calculations at the slightest setback.
Cough — cough — I seemed to have gotten off topic again. Let's get straight to the point.
Aso's unexpected death caused all of the Undead Emperors' original plans to become nothing more than bubbles. This also caused the Undead Emperors to all have their own plans for survival. And now, the withered one before me had come looking for me.
"What do you think of the Tark Republic? Do you want to revive the Tark Republic's civilization? Or do you want the name of your country and the return of the Undead Senators? This is directly related to the possibility of our future cooperation. "
Actually, I was just asking the obvious. If it was the latter, Sandro wouldn't have come looking for me at all, nor would he have been surprised and astonished by the sight of the undead and the living coexisting as equals. Sandro wanted civilization and culture to be passed down.
But right now, as long as Sandro said this, it would be the same as stating his own goal in the negotiation beforehand. In that case, it would be my turn to casually state a price.
Sandro the Withered opened his mouth, but didn't say anything in the end. Just as I was wondering if he was going to force himself or use some new negotiation technique, he suddenly waved his hand, causing that mummy translator to jump out again. Sandro then started panting heavily while clutching his neck.
I then understood. Sandro had spoken far too few times, so he didn't even know how to use his vocal tract anymore. He was so agitated that he couldn't speak anymore …
In the past, Sandro had probably gotten used to using the soul language to give orders. But for existences like us who were souls themselves, using our souls as we pleased would be a type of provocation and highly dangerous. It would be best to avoid it if possible.
"What His Majesty desires is for civilization to be passed down. At the very least, he wants the Tark Republic's history and culture to be reestablished in this land …"
Thankfully, this mummy translator was quite eloquent. This was quite a timely addition.
I could understand what he was thinking, because this was also Aso's original goal. He had originally intended to forcefully teach the Tark Republic's ancient language to the newborns after the undead took control of Bardi. He would also forcefully promote undead magic, the Tark Republic's history, and other subjects. He would then extend this to politics, philosophy, arts, and other humanities. He would then gradually revive the entire Tark Republic's civilization.
For other countries, this would require conquering the Tark Republic. But for us, this wouldn't be difficult at all.
The Xiluo Empire had both undead and humans living together to begin with. Not only that, the Xiluo Empire didn't have any culture or inheritances. Part of his goal would be achieved by bringing in the Xiluo Empire.
The Mist Alliance had already made the practice of undead magic public and normal. Even the Elven Empire had been revived. It wouldn't be impossible for us to revive the Tark Republic as well. All we needed to do was give up some resources from the Xiluo Empire. Compared to the tremendous benefits we would receive, this was nothing.
Besides, if the Mist Alliance was able to have the last laugh after the war, there would be plenty of empty land to be had. The Mist Alliance had no conflict or hostility towards the undead, so reviving an undead republic with more living people wouldn't be a problem at all.
"… The Mist Alliance is the only country in Eich that can accept you. You've already seen how popular undead and undead magic are here. But how much you'll receive in the end will depend on how much you pay."
We had plenty to offer, but we didn't need to pay much. No matter how I looked at it, this seemed like a business deal worth looking forward to.
To be honest, I felt that as long as Sandro was willing to help, it would be worth it. Not mentioning anything else, Sandro was one of the strongest Undead Emperors in terms of combat strength.
Of course, I wouldn't tell him the truth. Reviving an entire country wouldn't be a simple business deal.
It would be impossible for us to sign a written agreement this time. The Undead Emperors were still openly attacking Bardi. If news of this spread, not only would it shake the undead's morale and morale, it would also cause the Mist Alliance to be labeled as colluding with the invaders.
At that time, not only would we be isolated internationally, the Holy Church would even have a reason to go on a northern expedition.
"There are some things that can only be done, not said …"
Since the Tark Republic intended to revive in the Northlands, they would definitely send over valuable treasures such as personnel, magical information, historical documents, and so on. The Northlands would then prepare space and personnel to receive these resources, as well as arrange for orphans and youths to learn the Tark Republic's greetings. Once the Tark Republic's revival was presented to the Undead Emperors, it would be a matter of course.
If the Undead Emperors were satisfied with the revival, that would mean that they recognized the new Tark Republic. Anyone who dared to touch the Northlands would be the same as daring to touch the Undead Emperors' lifeblood.
As for what the other Undead Emperors did, I wouldn't care. The only Undead Emperor who was willing to ally with me was Sandro.
Of course, I absolutely couldn't leave behind any written evidence or evidence for this. As for the rumors that might spread due to information leaking … well, there were plenty of rumors in this day and age. I could just stubbornly deny everything.
Wasn't a mega empire's special privilege to be a professional rogue diplomat? Just saying some empty words to deny some rumors would be far too easy for the Mist Alliance's propagandists and diplomats as long as there wasn't any concrete evidence.
Finally, Sandro opened his eyes. His eyes were completely blank, but his outstretched arm and forced smile were doubtlessly a sign of a "deal".
Once the undead and the living's right hand clasped together, this shadowy alliance would be completed.
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