Chapter 1113: Chapter 1113

"All right, I’ll make a trip back and see what the Divine Flame Empire really wants to do."

Lin Yucha also nodded gently, "Generally speaking, the Divine Flame Empire probably wants to use this opportunity to weaken our strength. After all, the battle is over on our side, but they have to continue; they won’t be willing without weakening our strength."

That was the only conclusion Du You could come to, and soon enough, he returned to his own territory. The first thing Du You did upon his return was to install the Storm Crystal near the Lord’s Mansion.

Storm Crystal: A special gem formed by the condensation of storms, which can enhance the cultivation speed of the people in the territory in storm attribute-related abilities to double the normal speed.

After seeing the new attribute of the domain equipment, Du You pondered, "It seems I need to collect some more storm-related cultivation methods. Storms, wait, aside from wind, there are also thunder and lightning and rainfall. Forget it, let’s experiment with all of them and just look at the reports when the time comes." Du You decided not to bother with it.

These matters were naturally for Shaliya to be busy with, as she had a large team under her to deal with various affairs.

Then, Du You came to Anya City, which is now the border of the Divine Flame Empire and the first city gateway to enter the empire. As a kingdom, it was natural to give the other side some respect.

Now wasn’t the time to turn against the Divine Flame Empire, so Du You brought his team and personally visited Anya City to show respect. The empire was quick to respond, and just the next day, the empire’s envoy arrived.

When Du You met the envoy, he was indeed surprised—it was his old acquaintance, Marquis Anlute. But after thinking it over, Du You understood the thoughts of the Divine Flame Empire. After all, it was easier to talk to someone familiar.

Anlute was the former lord of South Mountain City and also Du You’s direct superior in the past.

Recalling the past, it was sigh-worthy, Anlute himself also had a bitter smile. Back when he came to South Mountain City, who would have regarded Du You, an insignificant person, as important? Du You was merely in charge of assisting in wealthier territories.

But now, Du You’s strength had reached the fifth tier and was certainly not weak among them, as shown by the intelligence they had gathered. Du You’s performance on the battlefield was reported to the Divine Flame Empire at once. Naturally, as the envoy this time, Anlute was aware of this information.

Yet when comparing himself, who was once a fourth-tier expert and still remained at the fourth tier despite quick progression, he fell far short of Du You. In terms of strength, Du You had already surpassed him.

Not to mention, Du You’s rise was incredibly fast, and now he had become the king of a kingdom.

In terms of status, the other was a king and himself a marquis; his territory was not large, while the land area of the Shenghai Kingdom was considered large among kingdoms. And that wasn’t even taking into account the unknown extent of their maritime territory.

Now, facing each other again, the status of the two was completely different. If it weren’t for Anlute carrying the identity of an imperial envoy, they couldn’t even have an equal conversation.

"Marquis Anlute, it’s been a long time," Du You said with a smile, recalling that the past cooperation had been quite pleasant.

"Your Majesty, I hope you are well. I represent the Empire in these negotiations, mainly regarding military aid. We don’t have time to waste, so let’s get straight to the point," Anlute said, surprisingly direct, but that was preferable.

"First of all, I need to know how much military force you need."

"The more forces we can get, the better. You ostensibly have over two hundred fifth-tier experts; I believe you have more hidden. We won’t probe into that, so let’s stick with those two hundred," Anlute said.

Du You’s eyes narrowed. This was a probe; if he agreed too easily, the other side would surely think that he had even more hidden than those two hundred. Those old foxes really can’t be taken lightly.

"You’re joking, Marquis. To hold back the Sandpeople, we went all out. And we can’t possibly dispatch all our fifth-tier experts to maintain stability within our own kingdom," Du You said.

"But you also have those Giants, a thousand Giants of the fifth tier."

Du You nodded, "We do have Giants, but they can’t just wander anywhere. We’re unable to control them. They can only move about in the mountains at most—we can’t just hand over other territories, can we?"

"With those Giants for defense, you don’t need so much military power. Besides, the Quicksand Empire no longer has enough forces to continue attacking you. If they overextend themselves, it will become a severe risk later on. This is a pattern."

Du You nodded lightly, "Alright, let’s not discuss these. What I want to know is, why does the Empire need our help? With the Empire’s might, you shouldn’t lack this trivial number of fighters." Check latest chapters at 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⚑𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⚑𝕟𝕖𝕥

The Empire was vast. Although fifth-tier fighters were strong, the sixth tier was rare within the Empire, but the fifth tier was definitely not lacking.

Anlute gave a wry smile and openly said, "Are you aware of the situation in the north? The territories on the borders of the Grey Elf Forest and the Beastman Kingdom have lost some land, which turned into desert. They have even fewer experts. In order to contain the expansion of the Quicksand Empire, we decided to dispatch some of our fifth-tier experts for support."

"As a result, our own domestic experts have been reduced. Besides, you should know that many of the strong within the Empire are from great noble families, and it’s not so easy for His Majesty to mobilize them; everyone has their own selfish agenda."

"These two hundred experts are really meant for coordination, to plug some gaps. Otherwise, if the Quicksand Empire manages to break through, it wouldn’t be good for the Shenghai Kingdom. Now, to resist the northern assault, our southern experts have already headed north."

Alright, that was a mix of playing the victim and threatening, and his negotiating tactics were so proficient.

Du You knew he couldn’t take those words at face value. In reality, Anlute meant that if he didn’t dispatch troops for support, a part of the southern Sandman Army might just be let through.

Should they enter Shenghai Kingdom’s domain, parts of his territory could be turned into desert, resulting in greater losses.

Alright, Du You was now sure that the Divine Flame Empire really wanted to use this opportunity to weaken his forces. Only part of what was said was true, but he completely couldn’t refuse the proposal.

If the Divine Flame Empire really took action, the loss would be greater later on; what his territory needed most now for development was time. Falling silent for a moment, Du You’s thoughts settled quietly, but he also couldn’t just give them that many.