Chapter 120: Fists and Brains

  The bodies of the former King Brown and Chancellor Roscoe were not removed, left piled against the wall like two heaps of rags. The meeting resumed. The leaders of tribes other than the five great tribes were also invited.

  The Lizardman chieftain entered with Prince Taze and sat at the conference table with the other tribal leaders. The unconscious Harry Tribe chieftain was carried away, replaced by his son, King Brown's cousin. When the king's cousin was first captured and told that the throne had changed hands, he roared: "This is usurpation!" But upon seeing the bodies of Brown and Roscoe, he immediately quieted down.

  The tribal leaders who entered later were also greatly alarmed when they saw the two corpses. However, they weren't afraid of the corpses themselves, but rather thought of the Shadow Sage behind them. But Gru's explanation quickly turned their terror into uncertainty and awe. He tossed the token that the Shadow Sage wore around his neck, casually saying to everyone: "Rest assured. I guarantee he will never appear before you again." Then, without looking back, he walked out of the great hall with everyone's eyes on his back.

  Taze also directly changed from prince to king. Because it was an extraordinary time, and he was now the only legitimate male heir of the royal family, even without any formal ceremony, the originally rough-mannered Tatalia tribal leaders didn't find anything inappropriate.

  Of course, the reason they had no objections might not be just because of these things. The persuasive power of those two corpses in the corner was indeed very sufficient.

  "Perhaps some of you may think in your hearts that I am letting outsiders interfere in Tatalia's affairs, that I am betraying my country. I know this is what all Tatalians detest and hate most. But I think you all understand in your hearts what it would mean for Tatalia if my brother continued to sit in this position. I had no choice but to do this." Taze spoke eloquently to the tribal leaders. Although his appearance was indeed ugly, even somewhat comical, his every movement and word was calm and composed, plain yet easy to accept, while also vaguely having an undeniable quality. This kind of temperament and bearing was truly what a leader must possess. "And General Gru was only invited by me to help me a little. He will leave immediately, and Oufu will never interfere in Tatalia's affairs in the future. So please accept this rather extreme approach of mine."

  Except for the Harry Tribe, all the chieftains nodded slightly to show acceptance, with many even smiling, in stark contrast to the mournful expression on the face of the Harry Tribe chieftain's son. With the change of kings, the status of the always domineering Harry Tribe naturally plummeted, and the interests they had monopolized would now be distributed. Although it was indeed an extreme approach, under such a popular measure, it immediately appeared peaceful and friendly. Moreover, in fact, King Taze was indeed ten times more capable than his brother and truly more suitable for this position.

  The new King Taze continued: "Now I have called this meeting to discuss something with you all. I intend to form an alliance between Tatalia and Oufu. Whether you want to connect this decision with General Gru's help to me or not, please think about the benefits Oufu brings to us Tatalians."

  A tribal leader immediately said: "Just in the time since Oufu was established, because of active trade, my tribe's income from fur alone has doubled."

  Another tribal leader also nodded and said: "The sales of ore have also improved. Because transportation to Oufu is convenient, we can directly supply goods to merchants from other countries. With fewer intermediaries, we earn more gold coins."

  "With Oufu as a transit point, we no longer need to smuggle secretly to Erathia; we can openly and fiercely earn gold coins from those motherfucking bastards of Erathia."

  "And we are the country closest to Oufu. Oufu is developing so damn fast, faster than the weeds in my yard."

  The tribal leaders nodded one after another. Talking about matters related to gold coins always makes people happy.

  "But now Erathia has also stopped trading with Oufu." The oldest elder among the chieftains spoke up. He spoke slowly and unclearly, but it was obvious that his mind was very clear. His words expressed everyone's concern. "You all know that Oufu's situation is not good now. Although I must admit that we have benefited a lot from Oufu, will there still be such benefits in the future? Furthermore, do we need to offend other religious countries for it?"

  Many chieftains nodded in agreement. This was a fact. National alliances were not like children's friendships, where gratitude alone suffices; what mattered was interest.

  King Taze slowly nodded to the elder and said: "What you say is not wrong, Chieftain Trolsha. But in my view, Oufu's situation is not just bad, but very bad. To put it seriously, it could even be called dangerous."

  "You must all remember that the current Pope Magnus once expressed dissatisfaction with Oufu. And now, due to some people's deliberate framing, Oufu's relations with the surrounding religious countries are already very tense. Even though Mr. Sedros has no intention of war and has tried his best to mediate, war may be only a matter of time."

  King Taze looked at the tribal leaders, his voice growing heavier and heavier. "The latest news is that Pope Celeste summoned several Cardinals a few days ago. Although no one knows the content of the meeting, it was heard that a Cardinal said afterward that the Pope is now very dissatisfied with the wanton actions of those blasphemous beasts and heretic countries on the continent. Then, the dozens of Templars and several Paladins originally stationed in The Radiant Citadel almost all came out, scattered to various religious countries."

  The chieftains became restless. The smell of war and bloodshed in this news seemed to reverberate in the great hall. A tribal leader said to Taze: "You clearly know the situation is like this, so why do you still want to ally with them?"

  "Those words from the Pope might only be targeting Oufu. Although we've always had some small conflicts with Erathia, haven't they never really launched a major attack on us?"

  King Taze sighed, and his heavy expression could be clearly felt by the chieftains despite his ugly and comical features. "Even if he's only targeting Oufu. I believe none of you are short-sighted fools without judgment. Please think, if Oufu really falls under the siege of the surrounding religious countries, if it's occupied, what happens next?"

  "What will happen next?" The chieftains whispered among themselves. Only the old Trolsha chieftain thought for a moment, his old face trembling a few times. "You mean they will deal with us next?"

  King Taze nodded. "Yes. The value of Oufu as the central city of the Barbarian Highlands has been proven. And Sedros has led the orcs in building Oufu so perfectly. Moreover, the buildings there are almost all made of rock, and no matter how intense the fighting, it's impossible to completely reduce Oufu to ruins. So after they win, they will definitely take Oufu for themselves. And when the Barbarian Highlands becomes the sphere of influence of the Church, how will they deal with Tatalia, the only country with territory in the highlands and also the closest to Oufu?"

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  "We're not afraid of those Church pigs at all. Let them come if they dare." A chieftain of a barbarian tribe immediately roared. "I'll strip those white-robed pigs naked and stake them alive like last time."

  "Just this alone is enough reason to start a war with us." King Taze looked at this courageous chieftain and slightly shook his head, sighing. The people of Tatalia were simple, brave, and fierce, and this chieftain was representative of that. "I have never doubted the courage and strength of our Tatalian warriors. But after confronting Erathia for so many years, I believe you all understand very well without me explaining in detail the gap in strength between our two countries. It's only because of the large swamp terrain that Erathia's army is extremely unaccustomed to, and Tatalia's land and resources are not rare to them, not worth making their many warriors who can sacrifice to defend their homeland at any time fight to the death, so we can still sit here now. And if they find it necessary to eliminate us, and unite with other religious countries to attack from the direction of the highlands... that might be the time of our nation's demise."

  As soon as His Majesty the King's voice fell, roars immediately erupted from the mouths of the chieftains: "Let those Church pigs have their damn daydreams. I'll let any Church pig who dares to step into Tatalia taste my axe."

  "The warriors of the swampland cannot be destroyed. We will use our last drop of blood to defend our homeland."

  "I'll stab those bastards' crosses into their assholes, and then force them to lick it clean!" The tribal leaders became noisy, several hot-tempered ones pounded the conference table, cursing Erathia and all religious countries with the most vicious words they could imagine.

  King Taze paid no mind to these rough warriors, but quietly looked at the chieftains of the four great tribes who were not so excited. Those who could sit in their current positions were obviously much calmer than others. King Taze said to them in a very heavy tone again: "So I say we actually have no choice but to ally with Oufu."

  "But even if we ally, what then? Can we and Oufu alone resist Erathia and so many religious countries?" Chieftain Trolsha said slowly in that unique tone and way of thinking of old people. "Think of other ways."

  "There are other ways. The only other way out is: I think if we surrender to Erathia, become a vassal state, and of course, also submit to the Church. They probably wouldn't refuse. This way, we naturally don't have to fight them, we just have to submit to them in the future..." King Taze slightly raised his voice intentionally or unintentionally, ensuring that every tribal leader could hear.

  "Impossible." The roars in the great hall immediately became ten times louder.

  "Absolutely impossible. Want us to submit at the feet of those Church pigs who are stupider than lizards and more disgusting than dragonflies?"

  "Kneel and pray before a block of wood with those pigs? No, I swear in the name of my ancestors, such a thing will never happen in the Swamp Kingdom." Those tribal leaders who were easily excited were stimulated by this approach and jumped up. For a moment, the great hall was filled with angry roars.

  The Lizardman chieftain, who had not spoken, suddenly said: "If Tatalia submits to the Church. Then I will first lead my people to leave Tatalia and join Oufu." His voice and expression were still the characteristically cold and unchanging indifference of Lizardmen, but anyone could see that he would absolutely do what he said. Since His Majesty the Pope had already stated his intention to deal with all blasphemous subhumans, even if Tatalia surrendered, he and his people would probably be doomed.

  "This method really won't work..." Chieftain Trolsha tried to cough, raising his voice as much as possible to not be drowned out by the surrounding roars. Although his own clear and slick mind felt that it wouldn't matter much to yield on the surface, he also knew that the other chieftains and his people would absolutely not agree. He stood up and waved his hand, making others quiet down a bit, and asked King Taze again slowly and forcefully: "Even if we ally with Oufu, will the outcome be better than this?"

  The chieftains all quieted down, looking at the king and waiting for this answer.

  King Taze also fell silent for a moment, intentionally or unintentionally glancing at the corner again, and said: "I think we can still have some confidence in them." Everyone's eyes followed to re-examine the two corpses.

  Those easily excited chieftains became a bit excited again.

  In fact, this meeting was almost always conducted under a strange atmosphere. The two corpses constantly reminded everyone present of what had just happened, and the figure of the man who tossed the Shadow Sage's token that had once terrified them and walked away lingered in everyone's mind. This was especially true for those chieftains who revered strength and both feared and dreaded the Shadow Sage.

  The Shadow Sage rarely appeared in front of people, and except for those he deemed necessary, he would not show any goodwill to anyone. On the contrary, once someone offended him, the outcome would be miserable. So except for the royal faction of King Brown who regarded him as a god to be worshipped, everyone else kept a respectful distance out of fear of mystery and magic.

  Now this fear of the strong had transferred to the person who killed him, especially when knowing that he might stand on the same side as them. Although as chieftains everyone had to consider carefully, as warriors, who wouldn't want to have the opportunity to fight alongside such a man?

  "Don't everyone forget, the five thousand soldiers of the Ainfast Empire traveled a thousand miles to attack, and as a result, Oufu didn't even have a single orc injured, making those five thousand elites die without a single survivor. This is not just a demonstration of combat power, but more importantly, it shows their strategy and means." King Taze appropriately brought up this allusion. "The Ainfast Empire has already signed a peace treaty with Oufu. The dwarves of the Kalendor Basin have also maintained good relations with them. Their situation is not a complete mess. After all, in battles on the Barbarian Highlands, the orcs have an absolute advantage."

  "Also, you know, not all Church pigs are fanatical believers. Those timid and cowardly ones will also go weak at the knees when they see too much blood, and when they see too many corpses without gaining the expected benefits, those devout politicians will immediately temporarily forget their Lord and switch to economic and rational thinking. Because their Lord won't really appear to give them soldiers, to give them gold coins. Then they will reconsider whether such a war is really necessary to continue. Will Erathia really dare to lose its national strength in the Barbarian Highlands? Do they dare not guard against Nighon? Does that bitch Katherine want her bedroom to be taken as a nest by Harpies, want Minotaurs to rush into her boudoir and rape her?" King Taze gradually raised his voice, his tone becoming more and more cadenced, his eyes gradually falling on the faces of those easily excited chieftains. His originally ugly and comical face also became full of vitality, each facial feature coordinating with his tone to lead the emotions of those listening to him. "And the Church? What can the Church do alone? Without the support of so many religious countries, isn't Celeste just an idiotic place that doesn't even know how to earn a gold coin or get a loaf of bread? Can the priests in The Radiant Citadel pray for bread and gold coins? So in the end, won't that old man Magnus have to take back his words spoken out of senility, recognize Oufu, recognize us Tatalia?"

  The king paused, took a deep breath. Then he said in a tone full of fighting spirit and strength: "This is not just our crisis, but also our opportunity, a chance to let the entire continent witness the strength and courage of our Tatalia. We will rise in this crisis and become a kingdom that no one can ignore. In the future, even those knights of Erathia with their noses in the air will shudder at the mere mention of the name of the Swamp Warriors."

  "Good. On behalf of the entire Futt Tribe, I fully support the alliance with Oufu." A barbarian chieftain with his face fully painted shouted. "I am willing to shed the last drop of my hot blood for the rise of the great Swamp Kingdom."

  "Yes, I support it too." The other chieftains scrambled to express their passionate support. For a moment, the atmosphere in the great hall was high, and even two of the five great tribal chieftains seemed a bit excited. Although they knew that such matters should not be decided so emotionally, as warriors of the Swamp Kingdom, they couldn't help but be excited.

  Besides, even with rational analysis, there didn't seem to be any other good options. Perhaps taking a gamble was worth it. Chieftain Trolsha sighed, and under the urging of the surrounding chieftains, finally expressed his support last. Thus, the proposal for an alliance between Tatalia and Oufu was unanimously passed.

  Dozens of miles away from the Tatalia Royal Palace, Gru, riding a Wyvern with a young human, was leaving the country and flying toward Oufu. The specific details of the alliance still needed to be discussed and executed by Sedros.

  "Are you sure it's okay to leave like this?" the young man asked. "At least wait until it's certain that Prince Taze has completely control of the situation and then..."

  "I believe he should be fine." Gru said lightly.

  "Oh." The young man said no more.

  Gru nodded slightly in his heart. This was indeed a very smart and capable person. He was the spy Oufu had arranged in Tatalia to gather intelligence. He was also the one who wrote that long report to Gru. With that information and Sedros's plan, Gru had completely grasped the situation of Tatalia, enabling him to strike at the most critical point for immediate effect. Coupled with Taze's abilities, this is how such a major event that changed the situation and direction of the country was accomplished in such a short time in the most efficient way.

  Fists, no matter how powerful, are useless without brains.

  But Gru's expression now showed no relaxation at all; his mind was still on other matters. Because he knew that compared to his own effortless simplification of complex matters here, the negotiations and diplomacy on Erathia's side, although not involving fighting and killing, the bloodless verbal diplomacy might be a hundred times more difficult and a thousand times more dangerous.

  Because there were no fists there, only brains. And brains without fists are undoubtedly the most dangerous, because someone might take this opportunity to chop them off in one fell swoop.

  At the same time, in the palace of Erathia.

  "The Oufu envoy, Lord Bolgan, requests an audience with Her Majesty the Queen." The herald's originally first-class voice and articulation in this country became somewhat awkward because of this slightly ridiculous and tongue-twisting title.

  A short figure, dressed in clothes that seemed to try to appear as solemn and gorgeous as possible, strode up the red-carpeted steps. Suddenly, he stepped on his own trailing cloak, and like a gourd, he tumbled and rolled down from above.